falling through a book!
by x-Pick'n'Mix-x
Summary: Crystal gets hit round the head by the book, The Sign of Four, and wakes up in a library in 1878. And guess who the first person she meets is? please R&R rating is for elbow room :D NOW FINISHED! sequel will be up soon :D
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: **this is just a little idea (that will hopefully turn into a series) that wouldn't leave me alone, so, here it is :D enjoy, if you don't, feel free to throw rotten fruit and veg at me (but not sprouts, ergh!)

**Falling through a book!**

*normal POV*

"You coming?" Gemma, my best friend, asked.

"Yeah, I'll be there in a tick" I replied as I turned over a page of _'the sign of four'_.

"No you wont, your gonna be reading that all day, aren't ya?"

"Yeah I'm almost ready"

"You're not even listening to me are you?"

"Two minutes"

"You know, China just got blew up"

"Really? Was it a good party?" I asked as I turned yet another page.

"Right, that's it!" all of a sudden she was standing in front of me. "Give me the book!"

"Hold on! I just wanna finish this page!" I leapt to my feet as she tried to snatch it from me, and started running around the room trying to finish it.

"Give it to me!" she yelled.

"Never!" I cleared the sofa and ducked behind the table so she couldn't reach me.

But she dived across the table and the book flew from my hands. I crashed into the wall and the next thing I know, my book comes back down and whacks me in the head.

_Bam!_ It all went dark.

When I woke up, I felt like I had been hit by a train. Groaning, I sat up and rubbed my eyes. When I opened them, I realised I was no longer in my flat. I was in some sort of… library.

I stood up and began to look around. The place was completely empty but everything seemed… posh and old fashioned.

'How did I even get here?' I thought. 'Is this a dream?'

I kept wandering forwards until I finally saw someone. At a table, about 5 feet away, was a guy with black, messy hair and stubble on his face. He was quite cute actually. It suddenly hit me how much like Robert Downey Jr in Sherlock Holmes he looked, but younger, like 24 or something. He was wearing the same kinda clothes too. Victorian style. He was reading a large book and was surrounded by about 10 other books.

'May as well go ask what's going on' I told myself and walked over to him.

As I neared his table he looked up. He smiled and rose to his feet. "Evening Miss" wows! He had a really strong British voice, like from the movies, which made him hotter.

"Um hi. Why you dressed like that?" I asked.

He glanced down at his clothes and then back at me, he looked over my out fit and replied. "I think it is I who should be asking that"

What was wrong with my clothes? I was wearing a black vest top, a pair of blue jeans and some trainers.

"What do you mean? You're the one in the Victorian get up" I replied.

"'Victorian get up'?" he repeated. "My dear, everyone dresses like this. Where are you from?" he asked.

"London. Well, I live in London, I wasn't born there" I replied, looking around for someone I knew.

"Really? Then where did you purchase your clothes? I've never seen anything like them before"

"What _are_ you talking about?"

"Never mind Miss…?" he trailed off, obviously inviting me to share my name.

"Oh yeah, right. Hey, I'm Crystal Strong" I smiled and held out my hand. He took it and shook it.

"Pleasure to meet you, I'm Sherlock Holmes" he smiled.

I laughed. "oh right, you doin' a play or something? Is that why you're dressed like that?"

"I'm sorry?" he replied.

"You know, are you playing the part of Sherlock Holmes in a play"

"No my dear, I assure you I am Sherlock Holmes." He replied with a hint of amusement. Probably at my face, I expect I looked like a goldfish.

"You cant be! He was fictional! And in like the 1800s!"

"And the year is in fact 1878. And I assure you, I am not fictional" he smirked.

"I'm sorry; you need to go back to the mental hospital! I'm going to find Gemma!" I went to walk away but he said something that made me stop.

"I can prove it"

I turned to see him smiling at me. "Go on then" I replied.

He walked over to a near by window and flung it open. Confused, I wandered over and nearly had a heart attack! There were carriages being drawn by horses, women walking around in long dresses that covered their arms and legs, and chest. And, there were men walking around in outfits similar to Holmes'.

"Oh crap!" my knees went weak and I began to fall to the floor but Holmes stopped me. He pulled me to my feet and I blushed. You see, I'm not normally this… girly. I don't faint into people's arms.

"Erm… thanks" I looked at the floor as soon as he started grinning at me.

"No problem"

"I'm gonna go find out how I got here" I stated and I turned to walk away. I took a few steps forward and tripped over a book that was on the floor, as I fell forwards, I hit my head on the table and everything went black. Again.

When I woke up I was in a bedroom. I shifted myself so I was sat up and immediately a voice called, "ah you're awake!" I looked to the side to see a tall thin man with a moustache and mousy brown hair stood at my bedside. Strange, he looked like Jude Law's Watson…

"Erm, hey" I smiled.

"I'm Doctor John Watson" he smiled and held out his hand. I shook his hand and replied.

"Oh hey. What's up? My name's Crystal Strong"

_Bang!_

"What was that?" I cried.

"Holmes" Watson scowled and raced out of the room.

I leapt out of bed and dashed after him. I wanted to know what was going on!

I caught up with Watson as he opened a door at the top of the landing. As soon as he opened it, loads of smoke came flowing out and we both started coughing.

"Holmes?" Watson called as he walked into the room. He received no reply so he went over to the window and opened the blinds. There was a cry of pain from somewhere and a crash but Watson just sighed and flung open the window.

"Was there any need for that Watson?" called Holmes' familiar voice from… behind the sofa?

"Yes. There was." Watson replied and went to open the other window.

Holmes appeared from behind the sofa wearing a tatty dressing gown. Upon seeing me, he greeted me. "Ah, nice to see you up and about. How are you feeling?"

"Fine I guess" I replied and watched as he walked over to me.

"Hmm… this is most singular. How on earth did you get here?" he asked, more to himself then anyone else.

"Well, I was reading _'the sign of four'_," at this Watson's head snapped in my direction. "Yeah, you guys are pretty famous, though everyone thinks you're fictional. Anyway, I was reading and my friend Gemma tried to take the book away. I ran away, she chased me, tackled me into a wall and my book hit me on the head. Next thing I know, I wake up in the library. Only to get knocked out again five minutes later" I added under my breath, but I think Holmes noticed because he chuckled.

"Well," Watson smiled at me. "I'm guessing you have no where to stay?"

"Well… no I suppose not" I pouted at the floor.

"Well then, you shall stay here. I'll have Mrs Hudson prepare the guest room" with that, Watson left the room.

"Soooo" I shifted uncomfortably in my seat before adding, "any good cases?"

"None at all," he frowned. "Except you. This is a most interesting situation" he smiled.

"Tell me about it. I've been hit in the head by books before and never travelled back in time. It's kinda odd"

"indeed." Was his only reply. I turned away slightly and began looking around the room, though it felt like he was still watching me.

After a few minutes, I snuck a glance up to see that he was, in fact, still staring at me.

"Is there something on my face?" I asked and put a hand to my face.

He smirked and replied, "not at all. I was simply trying to figure out how it was possible for you to be here."

"Well, if you think of anything, let me know" I smiled. "Hey! Do you have Gladstone?"

"Why yes, he's over there" he gestured behind him and added, "why?"

"Just that in the film he was a really cute fat dog- hey, is he ok?"

Gladstone was currently led on his side with his stumpy little legs sprawled out across the carpet.

"Absolutely. He will wake up in around 2 hours" he replied and lit up his pipe.

"This is so cool" I grinned at him.

"Hmm?"

"I'm a really big fan. It's just weird to be sat here with you. Just so cool"

He smiled and was about to reply before he was cut off by Watson running into the room.

"Holmes, Mrs Hudson is furious! What on earth possessed you to put a severed hand in the pantry?" he cried.

"Ah yes, I completely forgot about that" Holmes grinned.

There were frantic footsteps on the stairs and moments later an elderly woman came bursting in with a maniacal look on her face as she bellowed, "SHERLOCK HOLMES!"

"How may I help you Mrs Hudson?" he replied casually.

Oh, if looks could kill…

**A/N: **let me know what you think please :D if you want more, let me know. I'll be sat here… in the corner… reading fanfics for inspiration… waiting quietly… until I get an email from fanfic sayin someone has reviewed and ill do a lil dance :D


	2. Chapter 2

**a/n: **well, I'm back with the next chapter :D it's nice to know people liked it, so thanks for the reviews! :) Well anyway, enough from lil ol' me… on with the story!

*normal POV*

"Would you care to explain why there is a hand in my pantry?" she hissed.

"Where else was I supposed to keep it?" he replied.

"I don't care! Just not in my pantry!" she cried.

"Well, dreadfully sorry, but I didn't think it would be a problem."

"How? How on earth did you think I would accept this?" she bellowed.

"Well, I'll be sure to put evidence somewhere else in the future," he smiled at her. "Well, now that that little drama is over with, how about some tea?"

"I-I… you're insufferable!" she waved her hands in the air and swept out of the room.

"Honestly Holmes, you have to stop getting into trouble with Mrs Hudson, she'll throw you out one day" Watson sighed and slunk into his chair.

"No she won't. She thinks of us as her sons Watson. She wouldn't throw me out."

I heard Watson let out a long sigh before he turned to me and said, "Mrs Hudson said it is fine for you to stay here and she will have the spare room prepared at once."

"Thank you. Thanks for letting me stay here guys" I smiled.

Watson smiled back and Holmes just nodded before lighting his pipe.

"Well, I have to get going." Watson said as he stood up. "I have a patient in half an hour and I need to go get some more supplies before I go."

"See ya later Watson" I smiled.

"Goodbye Miss Stone" he smiled back.

"Call me Crystal. I don't see how you can stand being so… polite all the time. I heard a snort from Holmes and looked across to see him smiling round his pipe.

"Very well, goodbye Crystal, Holmes" Watson walked towards the door and Holmes muttered a goodbye as he left.

"So, what now?" I asked.

"Well, what would you like to do?" Holmes replied as he took a long drag on his pipe.

"Umm… could you deduce stuff about me? It's really cool when you do it in the books and I'd love to see you do it"

"I suppose." He smiled and set down his pipe. He stared at me for a moment before speaking. "You enjoy art and writing, but excel in sports. You look like you do a lot of running. Hmm… a short distance sprinter?" I nodded. "Wonderful. Though I expect you can run for a long time, should the need arise?" I nodded again. "Thought so. Your parents aren't together; they were never married though and split up when you were only young. You have… three sisters and a brother. You don't like to act like a lady, instead you prefer to have fun and not take part in the usual things women do, like wearing loads of make up and talking about fashion. You fell out of a tree when you were younger and are now scared of heights. Also, you do well in English, Maths and Science but they aren't your favourite subjects. Am I correct?"

"Yeah! Everything you said was true! That was incredible!" I gasped.

He smiled and stood up to get some more tobacco. Once he loaded his pipe, he stopped in front of me and said, "you seem smarter then most women. Why dot you see what you can deduce about me?" he said with a smirk.

"Right well, umm… ok I'll try" I smiled and stood up as well. I walked around him and he remained still. I came to a stop in front of him and said, "Well, you have a nice bum" I grinned and ducked to the side as he began to choke on his pipe.

He cleared his throat awkwardly before turning to me and trying to look like he wasn't bothered. "Yes, well, thank you I suppose. But be serious now. What did you see?"

"Honestly? I'm not really sure. I noticed that you have the same clothes on as yesterday so you haven't changed and judging by your eyes, you haven't slept. Umm… you haven't shaved for a few days which suggests you don't really care about looking really neat. Which actually suits you, you'd look weird with a Watson moustache." He laughed and I continued. "Umm, you look like you haven't eaten in days. I'm gonna make you eat breakfast by the way. I won't have you dying of starvation on me." He laughed again and I said. "Well, that's about it. The rest is just stuff I learned from books so I can't really say that"

He nodded and called for breakfast before turning back to me. "Well, I suppose you did well for a first go" he smiled and walked over to the window. "You know, there is something odd about that woman over there."

I walked over to the window and stood beside him. "What one?"

"That one, just over there near the parked cab." We both squinted our eyes to get a better look. "By god! That's a man!" he cried and I burst out laughing.

"Why the hell would someone _want_ to wear those clothes?" I asked as I wiped a tear from my eye and leant against the wall to steady myself.

"Yes, they're not exactly comfortable" he agreed.

"They don't look- hey! How do you know?"

"Well, I had to wear one as a disguise once." He replied as if it wasn't unusual.

"Wow, you're a bit strange" I laughed.

"I have been called far worse" he laughed. "You know, you're going to need a something to wear, you can't go around dressed like that"

"Yeah I suppose." I agreed.

"I'll have Mrs Hudson get you some clothes when she brings up breakfast."

A few minutes later, Mrs Hudson came in with breakfast and Holmes asked her if she could find me out some clothes, she looked excited about having another woman in the house and scurried off to find some clothes for me.

We sat down at the breakfast table and I said to him, "right, if you eat _all_ your breakfast, I'll show you this" I pulled my phone out of my pocket and waved it around.

"What is that?" he asked, making a grab for it.

"ah-ah-ah" I grinned and tucked it back in my pocket. "That, is a mobile phone. It won't have any signal or anything coz you don't have any phone masts, but I think the rest of it should work. Until the battery runs out that is"

"What does it do?" he asked.

"You call and text people on it. Texting is like sending a telegram but quicker and it can get to you wherever you are. Umm… you can take pictures and videos and loads of other stuff. Eat all your food and you can have a look" I smirked cheekily.

He smiled and picked up his knife and fork to tuck into his food. I did the same.

As soon as we were finished, I was about to hand over my phone, when Watson burst through the door.

"You won't believe it! This woman came to see me today, wearing similar clothes to you Crystal!" he cried.

"Wha- where is she now?" I asked and leapt from my seat.

"Why she's-" he was cut off as Gemma ran through the door.

"Oh my god! Gemma!" I grinned and she ran over to me and pulled me into a bone crushing hug.

"Thank god you're here!" she cried.

"How'd you get here anyway?" I asked as I pulled away.

"Well, after the book hit you in the head, you disappeared and I got really freaked out. I put the book on top of the cupboard and started looking for you. After a while, I gave up, I completely forgot that I put the book on top of the cupboard, until I threw myself against it and slumped to the floor, the book hit me on the head and I woke up in a doctor's office. Then he walked in and I told him the story so he bought me here" she smiled over at Watson.

"Woah! This is cool" I grinned.

"So, uh, who are they?" she asked.

"Well, this is Sherlock Holmes" I patted Holmes on the shoulder and he shook her hand. "And this is John Watson" he shook her hand too.

"The detective and the doctor?" she asked with wide eyes.

"Yeah! Cool aint it" I grinned.

"Wow" she muttered and looked around.

Just then, Mrs Hudson came into the room with arms full of dresses. She dumped them on the sofa and then just noticed Gemma stood there.

"Oh, hello dear. Will you be staying too?"

"Yes, if that is ok Mrs Hudson?" Watson smiled.

"Of course, there should be enough clothes there for the both of you for a while. I'll see to it that I get some more." She smiled and we thanked her before she left the room.

It was quiet for a minute while everyone looked at each other, before Holmes broke it.

"Can I look at that device now?"

**a/n: **well, what did you think? 'Permanently lost in thought' wanted an OC for Watson and I was thinking of bringing Gemma back, but that made me do it sooner. Anyway, hope you liked it. Let me know what you want to happen and if you liked it please :)


	3. Chapter 3

**a/n:** hey guys! I'm back! :D here's the next chapter, hope you like it :).

Thanks to everyone that has reviewed so far :D hope you're all happy with this chapter.

*Normal POV*

I laughed and handed over my phone. "Don't break it" I warned, but with a smile.

"Of course not" he smiled and took the phone. "Thank you" he nodded in my direction before taking a seat at his desk. Immediately, Watson joined him and was looking at my phone over Holmes' shoulder.

"How did we get here? I've seen you get hit in the head by books before and this never happened!" Gemma whispered.

"Weird, I said that to Holmes earlier." I commented. Just as I looked over in their direction, my phone light flashed in their faces and they jumped. "It's just the camera guys. Turn it round and look at the screen."

I watched as Holmes turned it round and laughed at the picture of their shocked faces he had clearly just taken. Grinning, he held it up and started pointing it at random things in the room.

I smiled and turned back to Gemma, who turned back after watching them as well. "Look, I don't know how we got here, but I like it. I'm not even sure I want to go back" I stated.

"Really? You've only been here for a while. How do you know you're ready to leave our old life behind?" she asked.

"My old life was boring. All we did was get drunk and then go to work hung over. Here, things will be interesting. Especially living with these two." I pointed over at them and we both looked across to see Holmes pointing the camera at Watson who was smiling.

"I just realised, they look like Robert and Jude!"

"Yeah I know! It's so cool"

Just as she was about to reply, Holmes suddenly cried, "how about one of all of us?"

I looked over to him to see he was waving the phone around and they were both grinning.

"Uh, ok" I smiled and we walked over to them.

"How do I get us all in?" he asked.

I smiled and plucked the camera from him. I set it on auto timer and put it on the mantle piece, but didn't start it.

"Right, bunch together and come forwards." They did this and when they were close enough (I checked the screen a few times), I pressed the button and quickly slotted in between Holmes and Gemma I wrapped my arm round Holmes and draped one arm across Gemma and rested my hand on Watson's shoulder. Holmes was about to look at me but I quickly said "say cheese" we all smiled and the phone flashed. I let everyone go and went over to pick up the phone.

"Was it good?" Watson asked.

"Yeah, take a look." I grinned and held it up, they all smiled and Holmes clapped his hands together.

"What an extraordinary device!" he declared. "Hmm, I wonder if there is a way we could recreate something to charge it so that it won't die…" he trailed off and dashed over to his desk where he started jotting down notes. "May I borrow it? I won't take it a part or anything, I just need to look at it" he smiled.

I walked over and pointed to the bit where the charger plugs in. "that is where you plug it in to charge" I smiled and handed it over.

I walked over to the pile of dresses and picked one up.

"These don't look comfortable" I commented dryly.

"But they look pretty!" Gemma squealed and jumped up to look through the dresses.

"You wont say that when you suffocate" I said quietly.

She scowled at me before scooping all the dresses into her arm, grabbing my wrist and dragging me out the room. "We're going to try them on" she called before we left.

After an hour of trying on the dresses, we finally finished. I was wearing a blue dress and Gemma was wearing an emerald green one. I couldn't breathe properly when we first put them on, so Gemma loosened it a bit for me so that I could get used to it first.

We walked back to the living room and walked in to see Holmes where we left him and Watson leaning over his shoulder.

"Hey guys. Any luck yet Holmesy?" I asked as we walked fully into the room.

"Holmesy…?" he turned to look at us and stopped whatever he was about to say. I suddenly felt very self conscious.

"Uh… yeah. Holmesy, thought I'd spice it up a bit" I shrugged and walked over to them.

I looked across at Watson to see him looking at Gemma. I smiled.

"You two look… delightful." Watson finally managed.

"Yes. 'Victorian get up' suits you" Holmes smiled at me, quoting me from when we first met.

"Thanks" Gemma smiled sweetly at Watson who smiled back and blushed a little bit before looking back at Holmes' work.

"Yeah thanks guys" I grinned and also looked at what he was doing. "Got any ideas yet?"

"Yes. I have the plan here, I just need to get the parts." He smiled, finally looking away from me and back at the paper.

"That was quick" Gemma noted.

"Quite simple really" Holmes replied with a smirk.

"Hardly" Watson retorted.

"Isn't it? Oh. Must be just me then" he stood up and with a smirk before wandering over to the window. "Crystal? That woman – sorry – man, is back again."

We all walked over to the window and looked out. Standing across the street, was the man from earlier.

"That's just weird" Gemma pointed out.

"Tell me about it." I agreed.

"Maybe we should et Mrs Hudson to ask him where he gets his clothes from. You two need new clothes if I'm not mistaken?" Holmes smirked slyly at me and I hit him playfully in the arm. "Well, there was no need for violence" he pretended to look hurt before sighing dramatically.

"I thought you were supposed to be tough" I laughed.

"I- wait, he's coming over here" he frowned.

"What? Oh. I wonder why?" Watson asked.

"Probably wants your help" Gemma offered.

"Oh dear lord" Holmes muttered darkly as there was a knock at the front door.

A few moments passed before Mrs Hudson came in to announce 'an odd looking woman would like to speak to you Mr Holmes'.

Holmes told her to show 'it' in (at this we all laughed silently, Mrs Hudson didn't get it).

When he/she walked in, Holmes looked like he might run away.

"Good afternoon… miss, "Holmes practically forced out the last bit before continuing. "Sherlock Holmes. How may I be of service?"

"You see Mr Holmes, I have read all of Doctor Watson's accounts of your cases in _the strand_ and I knew that I couldn't have anyone else on the case" he/she fluttered their eyelashes and Holmes looked like he was going to pass out. "You see, my necklace has been stolen. It's very valuable. It has a ruby in it you see. The police have no idea who by and I thought you could figure it out" he/she smiled and stalked towards Holmes who quickly ducked behind the sofa so that he could keep something in between them.

"I'm terribly sorry to say that I'm frightfully busy at the moment and simply don't have the time for another case" he glanced warily at me before turning back, swallowing hard. We all supressed our laughs.

"But Mr Holmes, I thought that perhaps when you found my necklace, we could go out for dinner to celebrate"

"I uh… well, dreadfully sorry but- you're wearing it man! I mean err woman!" he spluttered. I nearly choked.

He/she looked down and quickly covered the necklace.

"Yes well. I- truth be told Mr Holmes, I just wanted to meet you" he/she said in a husky voice. "So, how about dinner anyway?"

"No! No, no, no, no, no! You see I already have a… a…"

"A what Mr Holmes?" he/she asked, stepping closer to the sofa.

"Already has a partner. Now please stop flirting with my fiancée." I said in a commanding tone, but inside I was laughing.

I looked around at everyone's shocked faces until slowly, Holmes' face showed that he realised what I was doing.

"Yes. How dare you be so… brash in front of my fiancée?" he scowled.

"I- I wasn't aware that you… I best be leaving. Thank you for your time" he/she dashed from the room and seconds later the front door slammed.

"Thank you Crystal. I thought I was doomed then" Holmes smiled weakly at me before collapsing into his arm chair.

"Well I never. That was certainly the strangest thing that has ever happened in this room." Watson said.

"Agreed" Holmes replied and we all burst out laughing.

**a/n:** well, what do you think? Like it? Hate it? Let me know please :D and, if there is anything you want to happen, let me know :) thanks guys :) remember, reviews make me write quicker ;D


	4. Chapter 4

**a/n:** hey me again :D, here's the next chapter. Hope u like it :) and thanks again for reviewing. This story has the most reviews out of all of my others, so thanks a lot :D

*normal POV*

It was 8 o'clock and we were all sat near the fire. Holmes had successfully created a wind up charger for my phone, (he received a few electric shocks in the process) and we were now all talking over some tea.

"Have you been on any cases lately?" I asked.

"Actually, we just finished one yesterday. Holmes wrapped it up in his usual dramatic fashion, leaving the men of the Yard completely baffled." Watson laughed.

"It's not my fault if they don't understand logic- oh, I wonder why Lestrade is here this late at night. Must be a murder." Holmes smiled as he lit up his pipe.

"How do you know Lestrade is here? I didn't hear a knock-" I was cut off at the knock on the front door. "Oh right." I smiled.

A few moments later, a small, ferret faced man appeared in the door way.

"Holmes, there's been a murder. A man was found dead in an alleyway near Mayfair and there is no trace of anyone being there, or the weapon that was used. The man was found one hour ago by a couple returning from the theatre and we suspect he has been dead for roughly four hours. He has multiple slash wounds on his upper and lower torso, along with slashes down his arms from where we think he tried to defend himself."

"I see. Well then, there isn't any time to waste. We have two extras this evening Lestrade." He nodded in our direction and I smiled.

"Are you sure Holmes?" Lestrade whispered.

"Absolutely. Right, off we go. Come along Watson." He picked up his coat and a fedora and flew from the room. We all got up and quickly followed.

We caught up with Holmes at the bottom of the stairs as he had stopped and was talking to Mrs Hudson. When we got to the bottom, we found out why.

"I don't care if it was an experiment Mr Holmes. You can't keep making things explode and then trying to hide the stains on the carpet!"

"I assure you Mrs Hudson, I wasn't trying to hide the stain, I thought that particular stack of books looked better in that position."

"Honestly! It's like looking after a child!" she huffed and stormed into the kitchen.

"Watson? I think I'm going to need to find something to cover the singed rug." He shook his head slowly and opened the front door. "Anyway, on with the case." He grinned and skipped down the steps and onto the pavement.

"Is he always like this?" Gemma asked.

"Like what?" Watson replied.

"You know, changing his moods so quickly? And the topic?"

"Yes. Even more so when on a case." Watson smiled and gestured for us to go outside.

Once we made it outside, I saw Holmes climbing into a carriage. Lestrade walked ahead of us and offered his hand to help us in. once we were inside, he and Watson climbed in and the driver sped off.

"The couple that found the body, where are they now?" Holmes asked Lestrade whilst keeping his gaze fixed on the window.

"I believe they are still at the scene."

"right." Holmes replied and settled into deep thought.

The rest of the journey was spent in relative silence, other than us introducing ourselves to Lestrade.

"That's it just there." Lestrade pointed out the window at an alleyway about 10 yards away. There were about 15 police officers in the area and a few interested people.

Before the carriage came to s atop, Holmes jumped out of it. Lestrade and Watson both sighed at the same time and waited the 5 yards for the carriage to stop before climbing out.

Watson offered us a hand down before we all walked over to the scene.

"Lestrade?" Holmes called over his shoulder as we approached.

"Yes Holmes?"

"Why did you not tell me the man was mugged?"

"Because he wasn't. His wallet is still in his pocket along with twenty pounds."

"Ah, but his ring is not."

"His ring?"

"Indeed. You see the tan line? The ring was removed recently. The finger is still clean underneath where it would have been. Now, you see this mark here?" we all leaned in to take a closer look and he continued. "That, is a chemical burn." He raised the mans hand to his face and took a deep breath. "Ah, I believe it is from sulphur. Hmm, have you identified the body yet?"

"We're working on it now. He didn't have any identification on him. And it seems that the witnesses have left."

"right. No matter, I shall speak to them tomorrow." He put the man's hand back on the ground and began to examine the wounds along the arms. "Hmm, our assailant wasn't particularly strong." He then moved on to examine the wounds on the torso. "Not very deep at all. Hmm." He examined the floor around the body for a few minutes before laying down level with the man.

"Holmes what are you doing?" Watson asked.

"All in good time my good man." He replied and began to point to parts of his body that corresponded with the wounds on the dead man. He kept his hand on the centre of his chest and rose to his feet.

"Right, this was the first place to be slashed so our murderer was roughly- no, no that's not right." He frowned and clasped his hands behind his back whilst he walked in a circle around the body.

He stopped near the feet and faced the body. He then started walking backwards slowly for ten steps before spinning on his feel and crouching down. "Did you notice these foot prints Lestrade?" he asked.

"What foot prints?" Lestrade frowned and walked over to him.

"I didn't think you would have. Now, you notice the width of the stride? This would make our murderer roughly five foot two." He looked up at Lestrade who looked back over at the body of the dead mean. "Yes, it seems unlikely seeing as our man over there is roughly six foot, but I assure it is true."

"Now, are you sure you have checked properly for the murder weapon?"

Lestrade scowled at him before replying. "Yes."

"Really?" Holmes replied mockingly. "So, if I were to say… check over here…" he trailed off as he walked to the end of the alleyway and began climbing up a drain pipe that was on the side of a one floor building.

"What are you doing now?" Watson called.

"Climbing a pipe my dear Watson."

Watson sighed heavily and rubbed his face with his hands. "I can see that. But why?"

"Because… aha!" Holmes cried triumphantly as he hauled himself up onto the small roof.

A few seconds later, he reappeared and slid down the pipe. He walked over to us and reached his hand into his pocket. He pulled out a scarf that was wrapped around something and opened it. Inside was a butcher's knife.

"I believe this is what you're looking for." Holmes smirked and Lestrade went to grab the knife but Holmes pulled it away. "Ah-ah-ah. I need to look at it first before you mess it up." He grinned.

He held the knife up to the light of the nearby street lamp and started looking at it from every angle.

Finally, he smiled triumphantly and handed it over to Lestrade. "Right. I have what need. Good day inspector."

"Wait Holmes. You can't just leave without telling me what you've seen." Lestrade called as Holmes began to leave.

Holmes spun slowly on his heel to face us again.

"Very well." He sighed like someone long suffering before strolling back over to us. "Well. The man was murdered for his ring. I believe said ring is from a secret cult judging by the slight imprint it left. Now, the murderer was roughly five foot tow, as I said. But not particularly strong. The reason this poor fellow died was from the shock of what was happening, not the wounds inflicted. He was returning from Saint Bart's, which is where he received the chemical burn, and ran into the murderer. Before he knew it, he was being attacked." He paused as he looked over the body and then continued.

"If you ask at Saint Bart's who was working in the lab tonight, you will find the identity of the victim. When you do, do not forget to inform me straight away." He tipped his hat before swirling around and walking away. We all nodded at Lestrade before following.

When we caught up with Holmes, he had hailed a cab. He opened the door and offered his hand for us, before climbing in after us. Watson hopped in and we left.

"So, what did you decide not to tell Lestrade this time?" Watson asked.

"That the murderer was smoking a Cuban cigar before attacking the victim, that he was waiting for said victim for half an hour and paced the entire time and that the murderer was wearing shoes only made in one place."

"And where would that be?" Watson asked.

"Why Figgins' shop of course." Holmes grinned.

"Who's Figgins?" I asked.

"Holmes' tailor." Watson replied.

"Oh, well that's handy." Gemma smiled.

"Absolutely." Holmes grinned.

**a/n:** there we go, I added a murder :D here starts the mystery :) so, what did you think? Like it? Hate it? Let me know so I'll update sooner :D


	5. Chapter 5

**a/n: **I'm back :) here's the next instalment :)

When Figgins is speaking, read it in a cockney accent and it will make sense :D

*normal POV*

When we arrived at Figgins' shop, Holmes immediately hopped out and started banging on the door.

"Holmes, he's probably asleep." Watson sighed.

"How dull. Well then, we'll have to let ourselves in."

"No we won't Holmes! We can return tomorrow!" Watson suggested desperately.

"Not at all my dear Watson, Figgins won't mind." He smiled and dropped onto one knee in front of the door and pulled a leather pouch to the front of his belt which had various tools in it.

"How do you know he won't mind?" Watson demanded.

"Simple. I've done it before and he wasn't particularly bothered." Holmes shrugged a little before continuing on with the door. I put my hand to my mouth to stop the laugh that threatened to erupt.

"You've done it before? Why on earth would you break in here?"

"I needed a new shirt and I couldn't wait until opening hours. Figgins was most friendly considering he had just woken up. Always a pleasure to see me apparently."

"A new shirt? Holmes-" Watson was cut off by the sound of the lock clicking open.

"Splendid. Shall we?" Holmes smiled, rising to his feet and tucking away his tools.

"Lead the way." I replied. He nodded and strutted inside.

I followed, then Gemma came in, then Watson followed with a long sigh. Once we were inside, Holmes walked over and flicked on the gas lights before calling; "Figgins? Figgins come down here please."

There was a thump from somewhere above me followed by a bang and a muffled curse before I could hear footsteps on the stairs.

A few seconds later an old man appeared through a door behind the counter. "Hullo Mr 'olmes!" he grinned, showing us that he was missing a few teeth.

"Evening Figgins. Sorry to intrude at this hour." Holmes replied.

"Not at all Mr 'olmes! Always a pleasure to see yew." He smiled and shook Holmes' hand enthusiastically before Holmes turned to Watson with a triumphant smirk.

"Well, I need you tell me who you have sold a pair of your personal style of shoe to in a size ten?"

"Erm. Oi'll take a look fer yew Mr 'olmes." He replied and started flicking through a book that was on the desk. After a few minutes, he turned the book round and pointed to it. "Oi sold a pair to a Mr Smith a few days back. 'e was a roight strange one Mr 'olmes, he said 'e needed urgent loike coz he was goin' outta town in a few days."

"Can you remember what he looked like?" Holmes pressed.

"Erm. He 'ad black 'air, bout foive foot two 'e was. Uh, he 'ad a moustache loike your friend there and he was sharply dressed loike, but he didn't look loike he 'ad a lot of money coz the clothes 'e was wearin' 'ad a few holes in 'em. Only little ones mind yew, loike 'e had caught them on summit sharp."

"Very goof Figgins. When was this?"

"Yesterday sir. Oi 'ad to deliver 'em too him."

"Can you remember the address?"

"Yeah, 'e lived in Montague Street, number foive."

"Excellent! Thank you for your help Figgins." Holmes smiled and tossed him a sovereign. "For waking you up my good man." He added when Figgins opened his mouth to protest.

"Thank yew nr 'olmes." He smiled.

"Until next time Figgins." Holmes nodded and strode out the door.

We all said goodbye to Figgins and followed Holmes outside.

"Where to now then?" Gemma asked.

"Why, Montague Street of course!" Holmes grinned and clapped his hands together. "It's been a while since I last visited that street."

He stepped forward and hailed a passing cab and opened the door, once again offering his hand for us to climb in. Once we were inside the hansom, Holmes told the driver his address.

"So, what are you thoughts on the case?" Holmes suddenly asked.

"… Who are you speaking to Holmes?" Watson asked.

"You Watson. I have other questions for the two lovely ladies."

"Right, well, perhaps Mr Smith bought the shoes yesterday so that he could wear them for the murder, possibly so that there wasn't any tell tale marks that belonged specifically to his own shoes. Obviously, that didn't work. He has probably used a false name and possibly wasn't even staying at this address long term. I wouldn't be surprised if we got there and he had long gone." Watson replied.

"Hmm… interesting theory Watson. You were wrong about the shoes however, his old shoes were too small so he bought new ones, but, he will not be there when we arrive, that you were right about."

"How could you possibly tell that about his shoes?" Gemma asked.

"Simple really, the imprints of his toes in the footprint left at the scene told me. They were more pronounced at the end of the toes which suggests they are used to be curled over, even though the toes weren't quite at the end of the shoes. This shows that the wearer curls their toes out of habit."

"It always sounds so simple when you explain it, but I would never have thought of that." I commented.

"That's because you're not looking for the tiny details. Everyone always tries to concentrate on the clues that stand out, they don't look out for the small clues. Even though the little details are by far the most important." He smiled over at me.

"Right, my questions for the women." He suddenly announced. "Miss Gemma, what can you tell me about the body?"

"Uh, there was a dead guy?" she shrugged.

He sighed. "Come now, surely you noticed more than that?"

"Umm, the murderer didn't leave any marks on the man's face, so maybe he wanted people to be able to recognise the guy?" she suggested.

"Excellent observation. Yes, he wanted us to know who the man was because he wanted everyone to realise just who had died, for payback."

"Payback for what?" I asked.

"Most likely some petty feud. Now, a question for you Miss Crystal, what can you tell me about the scene?"

"Umm, the body was only just in the alleyway so the murderer had to do it quick, maybe he nearly missed the guy so he had to get him quick as he left the alley. The fact that the knife was thrown up onto the roof in a scarf shows that he was in a rush so he threw it up there wrapped up so that it didn't make a noise. Erm, that's about it. I think."

"Wonderful. You're all coming along nicely." He nodded.

"What are you on about Holmes?" Watson asked.

"As detectives of course!" he smiled. "You're all becoming rather good. Though, you do need to pay a bit more attention to the finer details."

As soon as he finished talking, the carriage came to a halt. We all climbed out and Holmes paid the driver before dashing to number five and knocking loudly. No one answered so he picked the lock yet again.

We all walked in and straight away a strong smell hit us. It smelt like… rot.

"Hmm…" Holmes muttered as he pushed open the door closest to us, inside was a decaying body. It looked as if it had been there for years.

"Eww!" Gemma gasped and turned round with her hand on her mouth.

"That is most unusual." Holmes muttered.

"Watson, how long would you say this body has been here?"

"A week or so." Watson replied whilst pinching his nose.

"Hmm…" Holmes stood up and wandered over to a table and picked up a piece of paper. He read it, frowned and handed it over to me. It read:

_Dear Mr Holmes or Scotland Yard, _

_I take it you've found Natalie? Most unfortunate that I had to leave her there. But what was I to do? She was far too suspicious of me all the time. By the time you find this note, I'll have left the disappeared. Do not try and find me, you will have no luck. _

The note was so brief and the fact that it was unsigned confused me even more.

"How did he know either you or someone from the Yard would find the note?" I asked.

"It's obvious really, it's not as if I am unknown her and the Yard are obvious people to be working a case. The fact that it was written yesterday is interesting though."

"Yesterday? Then surely he wont have got far?" Watson asked.

"precisely." Holmes grinned and clapped his hands together. "Come, the game is afoot!"

**a/n:** what you think? Please let me know :) I'll update soon, so in the mean time, please review :D


	6. Chapter 6

**a/n: hey guys :) sorry about the wait, I've been working on my other fics and my iPod has been very distracting lol. Anyway, thanks to everyone that reviewed and gave me ideas and support, I hope you all like this next chapter.**

**This is pretty much a filler chapter for me to put up while I work on the action bit lol. :)**

** xXx**

*normal POV*

_"Yesterday? Then surely he won't have got far?" Watson asked._

_"Precisely." Holmes grinned and clapped his hands together. "Come, the game is afoot!"_

With that, he dashed out of the building and paid some street urchin to run to Scotland Yard and give them the address where the body was found. Then, he started back towards Figgins' shop.

"Why are we going back there Holmes?" Watson asked.

"Because Watson, our murderer has left behind a vital piece of evidence."

"He has?" Gemma asked.

"Indeed. The note!"

"Sorry?" I frowned.

"The note! Did you not see the shoe polish on it?"

"…oh yeah! I forgot to mention that…" I muttered sarcastically.

"Well, the shoe polish was in the bottom left corner, I have the note with me and we will ask Figgins to see if he can tell what type of polish it is. Then, my investigation will be complete."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! One, you took the note? Lestrade will wanna see that! And two, how the bloody hell is shoe polish going to solve the case?" I demanded.

"One, Lestrade is welcome to see it when I'm finished; it is addressed to me as well, after all. Two, you'll see." He smirked down at me and strolled along the path, apparently we were walking there.

"So, who was the kid?" I asked after a moment.

"Kid?" he repeated.

"Yeah, the one you sent to Lestrade."

"Oh, Wiggins. He's the leader of the Irregulars." He smiled.

"Cool, cool." I sighed and looked over my shoulder to see Watson and Gemma in deep conversation. You could practically see her jaw dislocating and hitting the floor whenever he spoke…

"What are you- oh. I see." Holmes laughed as he followed my gaze. "They'll figure it out after a while." He smiled.

"They better, it's weird seeing her all star-struck over some guy." I laughed.

Holmes laughed too as we turned a corner. "How are you finding 'Victorian' London then?" he asked.

"It's awesome!" I grinned and he chuckled. "Seriously, it's like I was born in the wrong century! Although, then I wouldn't be me… ah well, this way's great too." I smiled.

"certainly." He smiled. "So, Watson's stories are remembered then?"

"Hell yeah! Thanks to him you're the most famous detective in the world! Although everyone thinks you're fiction. But, they have created a deductive method based on you. It's called 'the Holmesian method' or something. They use it in modern day forensics; it's all about the small details."

"Really? Wow, I shall have to thank Watson later." He smiled.

"Yeah, good idea." I agreed. "Oh, and you have a museum dedicated to you at 221B Baker Street _and_ you have a statue! Though it doesn't actually look like you. You look like Robert Downey Jr and it looks like… a guy with a funny hat. Everyone thinks you wear deer stalker hats."

"Really? How horrid. I despise those hats."

"Bummer, I was planning on getting you one for your birthday." I pretended to be sad and he laughed.

"Well, not a good idea." he laughed.

"Good job I was joking then." I grinned and nudged him lightly.

"Again with the violence? I believe you need help with your anger Miss." He smirked.

"What can I say?" I laughed.

*Gemma's POV*

"Look at them, they're so obvious." I laughed as me and Watson watched Crystal playfully shove Holmes and he pretended to be wounded, again.

"I know." Watson laughed. "I've never seen him like that with a woman. Not even Irene Adler could get him to mess around like that."

"Really? How weird. She does that to people though; somehow she just gets people to relax around her."

"I can tell. You're the same though, it feels as if I've known you for years." He shrugged.

"I know, I'm really glad that I got hit with that book, as weird as that sounds." I laughed.

Watson laughed too, which made me smile more.

All of a sudden, Holmes whirled around to face us. "We cannot go to Figgins' yet, one, it's only right to allow him sleep, and two, I need to think about something other that the case so that I can recall something. We'll go back to Baker Street and head out in the morning. Our suspect won't leave without his shoe polish" He announced.

_Won't leave without his shoe polish?..._

"O-kay… lets go then, it's getting cold." I suggested and Watson offered me his arm for the walk back, probably to warm me up a bit, I took it gratefully and we followed Holmes and Crystal.

*normal POV*

"Aww bless 'em." I smiled as I looked back to see Watson and Gemma walking arm in arm.

"Sorry? – Oh. I think they'll realise their feelings soon enough." He smiled. "I assume anyhow, I'm no expert in that subject."

"Oh I dunno 'bout that." I laughed. "Have you seen how many women check you out as you're walking?"

"'check me out'?" he repeated. Looking like a cute, confused little kid. He's rather adorable once you get to know him.

"Yeah, you know, like; 'wow, look at him! Great butt!' that kinda stuff."

"I-I that… ahem. I'm sure I don't know what you mean." He stuttered and coughed embarrassedly.

"Sure you do! I've seen them as they walk passed, they all look at you like they would like to rip off your shirt-"

"I haven't the faintest idea what you're talking about." He interrupted before I could finish.

Was he going red?

"Are you- you're blushing!" I smiled. "Why? No need to feel embarrassed at compliments. I mean, I'm no mind reader, but I'm pretty sure that's what they're thinking. I mean, I've seen what's under that shirt. Whoa!" I laughed.

"You've seen under my shirt?" he raised an eyebrow. Which looked strangely attractive…

"Well, I've seen under Robert's shirt, in the boxing scene. I'm pretty sure you have that kinda ripped look."

"Ripped? I assume that means muscle or something?"

"Yeah! Got it in one Mr Detective." I grinned.

"I see, was this 'boxing scene' in the punch bowl?"

"Yep. You kicked ass! Well, your character did. Can you fight?"

"I study Bartitsu, if that is what you mean." He smiled.

"Oh, cool." I smiled up at him and he smiled back. We held each other's gaze for a few moments before we both coughed and looked away awkwardly.

We turned onto Baker Street and continued to walk towards 221B.

"Do you really think Mrs Hudson tries to poison you?" I asked.

"Occasionally. It depends on my behaviour at that particular time." He smirked, I giggled.

"She wouldn't poison you."

"Of course not. Not to kill me anyway, but perhaps to render me unconscious and therefore out of her way for a while."

"Oh, good idea. I know what to do if you get too annoying then." I glanced up at him with a smirk.

He clutched a hand to his chest dramatically before replying. "You really are out to wound me, aren't you?"

"Yep, that's my life's goal." I grinned as he swung the door open and held it open for me to enter.

"You need a better hobby then." He smiled and carried on holding the door as Watson and Gemma caught up. "Come along mother hen, we don't have all night." He laughed.

*Holmes' POV*

Watson scowled at me as he entered with Gemma and I shut the door, laughing.

"I'm not your mother hen!" he glared, but eventually smirked.

"Of course not… mother hen." I smiled and we made our way into the living room.

As we took our usual seats, I couldn't help but notice how with her red cheeks from the cold, Crystal looked even more radiant than usual. Her smile was infectious too, whenever she smiled, I smiled. I couldn't understand it!

"Why do you need to take your mind off the case?" Gemma asked me.

"Because, very occasionally, when I'm not paying full attention to my case, I remember a small detail that I may have over looked before. I only do this when I have pretty much solved the case; it's just to make sure that I have all of the details."

"Oh, cool." She smiled.

I watched as Crystal pulled out her phone and started looking at it, smiling. Then she burst out laughing, making me jump.

"I just saw that picture you took without realising it!" she laughed.

"Oh, yes, that was rather… unflattering." I laughed.

"Oh nonsense, you both look… dashing." She laughed and continued looking through the phone. "I wish I could print our group photo off. It's really nice." She commented.

Ah, the picture of all of us. When Crystal had put her arm around me and made me wonder if that was the normal thing to do in her time, I assume they didn't have to look deadly serious like we did in our rare photos.

"Why'd you take a picture of your shoe Holmes?" she asked.

"I didn't mean to. I pressed the button by mistake." I smiled.

"Oh, okey dokey." She smiled and went back to looking through the phone. After a few minutes, she put it on the side and relaxed into her chair. "That body really smelled earlier." She wrinkled her nose in disgust at the memory.

"You like to talk about rather random things." I commented.

"Sure do. My brain is full of weird stuff." She laughed, and I soon found myself laughing along with her. Watson and Gemma were in some conversation about medical procedures at the moment.

I pulled out my pipe and began to fill it with tobacco as she stared at the fire, crackling away in the hearth.

As soon as my pipe touched my lips it was yanked away. I looked up to see Crystal holding it, looking at me sternly.

"Smoking's bad for you."

"…and…?" I raised an eyebrow and she stared at me for a moment.

"So, you shouldn't smoke. It damages your lungs." She replied.

"Ah, but you see, I need to smoke. It helps me think." I replied and reached out for my pipe, only for her to hold it out of my reach.

"Ah-ah-ah. Not so fast." She waggled her finger at me and smirked. Watson and Gemma were watching us now with amused expressions at my predicament. "Did you not listen to what I just said?"

"Yes. But that doesn't mean I'm not going to smoke." I replied, making another grab for it, but she pulled it away again. "Really now? Is there any point in this?"

"Well yeah, I don't think any of us here want you dying on us. Bar Mrs Hudson." She smirked.

"You realise I have other pipes?"

"I'll have to confiscate them too then."

"I'll buy more."

"I'll take them."

"I'll hide them and smoke when you're not around."

"…damn." She cursed and looked at Watson and Gemma for some sort of inspiration.

"Holmes, if she says it's bad for your health, perhaps you shouldn't do it?" Watson suggested. Traitor.

"Watson, you smoke too!" I whined.

"I'll stop then." He smiled.

"…it's either the pipe or the needle…" I left that sentence hanging in the air and all heads snapped in my direction.

Immediately, Crystal handed my pipe back. Smirking, I sat down with it. But, as I went to light it, I saw the disappointment on her face and for some reason, I couldn't bring myself to light it. Damn woman.

I sighed heavily and put my pipe back in my pocket. She smiled straight away and looked somewhat proud and surprised.

"Women…" I muttered.

"Where would ya be without them?" Gemma laughed.

"Well, we certainly wouldn't be alive as-" I began but was cut off when something soft hit my face. I removed the pillow and looked up to see Crystal grinning at me.

"No lectures, it was a joke." She laughed. Watson and Gemma obviously found her method of shutting me up rather amusing and were currently in hysterics.

"I was simply going to-"she cut me off by launching another pillow at me but I caught it in mid air and just as I threw it back, Mrs Hudson came in.

"Sherlock Holmes! Stop acting like a child!" she scolded.

"Mrs Hudson, I was simply-"

"No, no excuses! You're far too grown up to be throwing pillows at women!"

"but-"

"No. now, here's your tea. No more causing trouble Mr Holmes." She waggled her finger at me and left, leaving me stuttering excuses and everyone else laughing uncontrollably.

"Yeah Holmes, stop being so childish." Crystal laughed.

"I swear, women are out to get me!" I mumbled, going over to my chemicals.

"Oh yeah, there's a club and everything." Gemma added.

"I can imagine." I scoffed and began fiddling with the beakers.

**xXx**

**a/n: well? Was it worth the wait? Probably not lol, it's just a filler chapter. I thought I'd build on the relationships between the characters. Yeah, I even changed POVs! Lol :) anyway, I hope you liked it. I know Holmes is a bit OOC in this story, but it's how I want him to be, I like it :D lol.**

**Please review, cyber cookies to everyone who does :D**


	7. Chapter 7

**a/n: sooo sorry for the wait! I really am. I forgot about updating this. *hits self in face* there, now I'm in pain for abandoning my characters. *sniff***

**ANYWAY! Thanks to everyone that's reviewed :D I'm really happy that you all like this fic and I hope you like this chapter. It's also a sort of filler, because I just cannot think of what's going to happen with the murderer… any suggestions?**

**xXxXx**

*Holmes' POV*

"_Women…" I muttered._

"_Where would ya be without them?" Gemma laughed._

"_Well, we certainly wouldn't be alive as-" I began but was cut off when something soft hit my face. I removed the pillow and looked up to see Crystal grinning at me._

"_No lectures, it was a joke." She laughed. Watson and Gemma obviously found her method of shutting me up rather amusing and were currently in hysterics._

"_I was simply going to-"she cut me off by launching another pillow at me but I caught it in mid air and just as I threw it back, Mrs Hudson came in._

"_Sherlock Holmes! Stop acting like a child!" she scolded._

"_Mrs Hudson, I was simply-"_

"_No, no excuses! You're far too grown up to be throwing pillows at women!"_

"_But-"_

"_No. Now, here's your tea. No more causing trouble Mr Holmes." She waggled her finger at me and left, leaving me stuttering excuses and everyone else laughing uncontrollably._

"_Yeah Holmes, stop being so childish." Crystal laughed._

"_I swear, women are out to get me!" I mumbled, going over to my chemicals._

"_Oh yeah, there's a club and everything." Gemma added._

"_I can imagine." I scoffed and began fiddling with the beakers. _

…

I had been doing an experiment with sodium hydroxide for several minutes when I felt a hand gently rest on my shoulder. I looked up to see Crystal smiling at me.

"Sorry for getting you in trouble with Mrs H." she laughed.

"Oh, no need to be sorry. She doesn't need an excuse to blame me for something." I laughed, setting down my equipment and turning to face her as she sat in a nearby chair.

"Would you really have used the needle?" she asked.

"No." I answered honestly. "Since you've been here, I actually haven't had the urge to pick it up at all." I admitted.

"That's great!" she grinned. "Must be my awesomeness…"

"That must be it." I smirked.

"Obviously." She replied smugly, making me chuckle. "Aw, look at them. They look so sweet." She nodded her head in Watson and Gemma's direction. I looked over my shoulder to see them both sat on the couch, leaning towards each other slightly in their conversation.

"Sweet? How so?" I asked.

"What do you mean how?" she frowned. I shrugged. "You know, like they look good together." She answered.

"Ah, right. Indeed they do." I replied.

"Hey, you two." She called. They both looked over at her with raised eyebrows. "When're you gonna get together already?"

They both turned a bright shade of red before trying to stammer out a reply. I sat there watching in amusement the whole time.

"I- I don't know what you're talking about." Watson finally managed to get out.

"Sure you don't." Crystal grinned mischievously.

"I don't." Watson defended, looking a little flustered…

"You can't talk anyway!" Gemma suddenly declared.

"Sorry?" Crystal frowned.

"You heard." Gemma grinned, suddenly looking rather evil. "You two, the way you look at each other, the way you play around, how you're always talking to each other, always sneaking looks when you think no one's looking. Well, I noticed."

"Whatever. We don't do that, do we Sherlock?" Crystal huffed.

"Not at all." I defended us both, leaning back in my chair and crossing my arms. Looking anywhere but anyone's face.

"See! You can't even look at anyone now! And you've gone red!" Gemma laughed.

"Haven't." We both muttered.

"Aw, has someone got a crush?" she smirked. _How did this turn on us again?_

*Crystal's POV*

"Yeah, you have. On Watson." I retorted.

She turned the colour of beetroot. She was about to reply with a comeback, but Mrs Hudson came in and spoke up.

"Lets face it dears, you all have a 'crush'. Mr Holmes is infatuated with Miss Strong. Miss Strong feels the same about Mr Holmes. Mr Watson is infatuated with Miss Evans, and she feels the same way. It's extremely obvious. You all just need the courage to act on those feelings." And with that, she left the room with an empty tea tray.

Stunned silence. That's what she left behind. We were all just sat there, staring at the door she had just left through. Suddenly, she popped her head back round the doorway. "I don't hear much declaration!" she laughed and her footsteps could be heard going down the stairs.

"Whoa. That was so weird." I commented after another few moments of silence.

"… ahem. It most certainly wasn't normal." Watson agreed.

Slowly, I turned to look at Sherlock to see he was already looking at me. We smiled at each other awkwardly before I turned my gaze to the fire. Damn that woman. She's gone and made the whole bloody room awkward!

"Well, Mrs Hudson certainly is nosy." Gemma announced with a giggle.

"She most certainly is." Sherlock laughed.

"… Okay. It's gotta be asked, does anyone know how she knew?" Gemma asked.

"Not a clue." I replied.

"No, I don't know either." Watson commented.

"Nor me." Sherlock sighed.

"Right. Well, uh, what now?" she asked. Everyone looked around at each other before shrugging. Ha, I bet this'd be hilarious to watch. Like putting a group of nervous teenagers in a room and seeing who asked who out first.

"Fine then. Sherlock, would you like to catch a movie with- wait. No movies here. Woops." I laughed. "Wanna go out for dinner?"

"Certainly." He smiled.

"Gemma, would you care to join me for dinner?" Watson asked.

"Yep." She grinned.

"Excellent. Shall we go now?" he asked.

"Sure." She smiled and they nodded to us before leaving.

Sherlock got up and offered me his hand to help me up. "Let's do this properly shall we? Crystal, would you do me the honour of accompanying me to dinner?" he asked charmingly.

"Hmm… let me think about it…" I tapped my finger against my lip, pretending to think about it. "Sure, why not." I grinned.

"Wonderful." He smiled and led me out of the house. As I looked back I saw Mrs Hudson grinning to herself. What is she? A voodoo woman? Are we her voodoo dolls? Well, there's a weird thought…

Sherlock got us a hansom, helped me into it and then told the driver to take us to the Royal.

We arrived at the restaurant shortly after and were promptly shown to a table. I spotted Watson and Gemma at a table on the other side of the restaurant.

"Hey, look who's over there." I whispered to Sherlock as we sat. He followed my gaze and smiled. Then he looked back at me.

"Yes, this is our favourite restaurant. The food here is marvellous." He smiled.

"Ah right. By the way, when we were leaving Mrs Hudson was grinning like a mad woman." I commented.

"She is a mad woman." He replied. The way he said it so casually made me nearly burst out laughing. I would of if I didn't cover my mouth with my hand.

"How long as she been your housekeeper?" I asked.

"Too long. Far too long." He smirked.

"Well, she is pretty good at her job. And she puts up with you, which I don't think any other house keeper would. You're a pain in the butt sometimes." I laughed.

"Me? Never!" he pretended to look offended and sat back in his chair with a huff.

"Yeah you, and yeah, quite a lot." I grinned at him. "Oh, and I just wanted to say; thanks for letting us stay. It's been great."

"My pleasure. It's nice having you around." He smiled, leaning forward in his chair again. "Do you not want to go back then?"

"Nope. For some reason, no I don't. Not even a little bit. I prefer it here. Better company." I winked.

"Well, what can I say? 'Must be my awesomeness'" he replied, quoting me from earlier and taking a gulp of his wine.

"Or, it could be," I paused, leaning forward so I could whisper. "You're rugged good looks and great butt?"

I laughed as he choked slightly on his wine and brought a napkin to his mouth.

"What? Can't handle the truth?" I smiled mischievously.

"Not when I'm drinking, no." he laughed.

"Oh, you've gone red again! Ha!" I laughed as he attempted to look casual.

"I have not. It's just rather hot in here." He replied.

"Yeah, whatever. You're blushing." I grinned.

He leant forward and whispered; "Maybe that's because I was thinking about the rather pleasant view of your 'ass' when you walked in front of me earlier?"

Aw crap! He's playing me at my own game! How unfair!

Yeah, I'm pretty sure I'm now the colour of a tomato that's been left out in the sun. Brilliant.

"Sherlock! You're meant to keep blushing, not make me blush!" I whisper-yelled.

"ah-ah-ah, now where's the fun in that?" he smirked.

"Well it's fun for me." I retorted.

"And this way is much more fun for me, my dear." He smiled smugly.

"You wait till we aint in public. You're gonna get it!"

"Get what?" he smirked, raising his eyebrows. Damnit! When did he become a master of innuendo?

"My fist in you face!" I replied as I turned another shade of darker red.

"Now, now darling. No need for threats. You wouldn't like for me to resort to physical contact would you?"

"Holy mother of god! Are you trying to put _all _the blood in my head?"

"Absolutely not. Where would be the use in that?" he asked.

"Okay, okay. You win. I give up. Please, no more." I said through giggles. You cannot imagine how funny it is to hear Sherlock Holmes using innuendo. It's just hilarious, and now I'm getting funny looks from the other people.

"Excellent. Now then, shall we order?" he asked.

"Sure thing." I smiled and he called for a waiter. We ordered and then the waiter left to get our food.

"Well, I suppose it's actually rather useful that Mrs Hudson is nosy." He commented.

"Yeah. Looks that way." I laughed. "It was definitely a shock though. I didn't think you were interested in me." I replied.

"I didn't realise it fully until it was bought up by Gemma." He admitted.

"Me neither. Aw look! How cute!" I cooed, looking over at Watson and Gemma who were holding hands across the table as they spoke.

"Hmm? Oh, Watson and Gemma?"

"Yeah. How sweet." I smiled.

"Yes, Watson's a lot more experienced in this area than I." he smiled.

"Yeah, but it isn't Watson I'm interested in, is it?" I winked.

He smiled and took my hand in his, placing a soft kiss on it before releasing it and sitting back, just staring at me with a half smile on his face.

"What? Is there something on my face?" I asked.

"No, not at all." He replied.

"Then why are you staring at me?"

"Why wouldn't I?" he replied with a playful smirk.

"Because I might do this?" I grinned and pinched his leg under the table. He hissed through his teeth and rubbed where I pinched him.

"And that was for…?"

"Fun?" I suggested with a smirk.

"So I'm not allowed to look at you?" he asked, one eyebrow raised.

"… well yeah. But why were you staring at me?"

"No reason. Ah, thank you." He smiled at the waiter as he placed our food on the table.

"Right, and I'm Michael Jackson." I shot back.

"Who?" he asked.

"Mi- you know what? Never mind." I smiled.

When we finished, we decided to walk home rather than take a carriage. Deciding this, we stepped out of the restaurant and left for home.

**a/n: what did you think? I hope you liked it :) I have to admit, I loved the Mrs Hudson bit. I can so imagine her doing that lol ;)**

**anything you want them to talk about on the way home? Want them to kiss in the next chapter? You gotta let me know! That way, your wish may be granted xD please review :)**


	8. Chapter 8

**a/n: here's the next chapter :D thanks to everyone that reviewed, I'm glad you're all enjoying this. Hope you like the next chapter.**

**xXxXx**

*Crystal's POV*

"_So I'm not allowed to look at you?" he asked, one eyebrow raised._

"… _well yeah. But why were you staring at me?"_

"_No reason. Ah, thank you." He smiled at the waiter as he placed our food on the table._

"_Right, and I'm Michael Jackson." I shot back._

"_Who?" he asked._

"_Mi- you know what? Never mind." I smiled. _

_When we finished, we decided to walk home rather than take a carriage. Deciding this, we stepped out of the restaurant and left for home._

…

"So, what're your thoughts on the case?" I asked as we walked arm-in-arm down the street.

"Well, I believe that the murderer killed the man as he left the alley because he nearly missed him, like you said, but I think that he killed the man because he was having an affair with his wife. Now, the shoe polish. There were remnants of it in the footprint left at the scene which meant that he applied it excessively and not correctly. The shoe polish, I believe, is made by Figgins. Hence why we need to go to his shop tomorrow. I believe he will go back for it as it is a unique brand, he's added something to it that makes it un-stainable. That is why he will go back to Figgins' shop, to get some more shoe polish to add his mixture to."

"Why would he want it not to stain?" I asked.

"So that he wouldn't have to purchase new shoes again. There would be no blood on his shoes." He replied.

"Right. And how are we going to know it's him?"

"Because, as I said, he didn't apply the polish correctly. We'll be able to spot him immediately."

"Oh. That's actually pretty clever." I appraised.

"You seem surprised?" he stated with a raised eyebrow and a smirk.

"Well, it just seemed so much more complicated in my head."

"How so?" he asked as we turned a corner and continued our walk in cool night air.

"I can't explain it… I just had no idea that any of that had happened." I laughed. "Anyway, let's talk about something else. Um, learned anything new on the violin recently?"

"No, I make it up. I know a few symphonies, but mostly I just improvise." He laughed at my poor attempt at starting conversation. "Shall we walk through the park?"

"Yeah, that'd be great." I smiled and we turned into the park, following the path by a lake before sitting down on a bench.

I shuffled closer to him slightly so that our sides were pressed against each other and smiled, looking out over the lake. It was beautiful. There were a few ducks and a couple of swans floating in the water, making quiet noises every now and then and ducking under the water. There were trees on the other side of the lake that were swaying slightly in the gentle breeze. It was amazing, the moon and stars were shining on the still water, making it look like an extension of the sky.

"It's lush here." I commented.

"It is a wonderful view, yes." He smiled over at me before looking back out over the water.

"Thanks for tonight, I had a great time." I smiled.

"So did I, your 'awesomeness' was very high tonight." He smirked.

"Hey!" I nudged him lightly with my shoulder and he grinned before slowly lifting up his arm and draping it around my shoulders. I smiled and snuggled into his chest, breathing in his scent which smelt like faint aftershave, tobacco smoke and just general Sherlock. All in all, it was now my favourite smell.

"I… Crystal, I just wanted to tell you that… I mean… I really enjoy…" he struggled to find his words and I sat up straight so that I could look him in the face. "I find that I rather enjoy your company Crystal, and… I like…"

"I like you too Sherlock." I smiled at his awkwardness when it comes to this sort of thing.

"Right, that's good to hear… because I hoped…" he stopped and looked around for inspiration.

"We could do it again?" I offered.

"Yes. I'd love to spend more time with you." He smiled.

"You realise we live together and spend pretty much every minute together, right?" I smiled sweetly.

"Yes… I mean… well…"

"Alone?" I suggested.

"Yes, quite. That's what I was saying…" he trailed off as we locked eyes.

As I stared into his chocolate coloured eyes, I wanted nothing more than to stay like that forever. But, when his gaze flicked down to my lips, my heart skipped a beat and I leant forward slightly, he mirrored my action immediately. We moved together slowly, and as soon as we were inches apart, I couldn't take it any longer and leant in, capturing his lips with mine.

I smiled into the kiss as I felt one of his arms slip round my waist while the other went to gently hold my cheek after brushing some hair from my face. I wrapped my arms around his neck and deepened the kiss as I pulled him in closer, I couldn't seem to get him close enough to me. When we pulled apart for breath, I rested my forehead against his and smiled, he beamed back and I pulled him in for another kiss, this one more passionate than the first.

We pulled apart a second time to catch our breaths. That kiss was literally breath taking. For someone with little experience with women, he can sure as hell kiss. I gave him a peck on the lips before snuggling into his shoulder again, my arms wrapping around his lithe stomach. His arms wrapped around my waist and he rested his head on top of mine as we both looked out over the lake.

We stayed like that, in blissful silence, for about 10 minutes before I started getting too cold, despite Sherlock's body heat beside me.

"We should head back now, it's getting cold. And late." I smiled, leaning up to give him another quick kiss before getting up to my feet and grasping his hands to pull him up. I took his arm and we headed back towards Baker Street, I had a smile on my face the whole way.

When we got back, we headed straight upstairs and into his room, collapsing on the sofa next to each other.

"I have another deduction to add to my list." I stated.

"List?" he repeated, turning on the sofa to face me.

"Yeah, you know: number one was 'great butt'," I saw the corners of his mouth twitch upwards and I smiled. "Number two, 'rugged good looks'. Number four, 'smells nice' and number five is 'is a bloody great kisser'." I laughed as he cleared his throat slightly and started turning his lovely shade of red. "You're blushing again."

"Am not!" he defended.

I grinned and sat up on my knees, placing my hands on his knees and leaning over. "Are too."

"I do believe you're mistaken, my dear." He smirked.

"Am I? Oh, well then I guess I owe you an apology." I half smirked before leaning down and kissing him softly, trying not to grin when his arms slipped round my waist as he gently lowered me backwards so that he was hovering above me.

"Apology accepted." He muttered huskily against my lips, making me laugh into his mouth.

I heard the front door open and close downstairs and the voices of Watson and Gemma filled the air as they headed up the stairs. With a last peck on the lips, we sat up and I leant against him as he wrapped his arm around me again.

"Holmes? Crystal? You in?" Gemma called.

"In here guys." I called back.

The door opened and they both walked in, hand-in-hand. Watson raised his eyebrows at us slightly – probably surprised that Sherlock was publicly displaying emotion – before he led Gemma over to the other sofa and they sat down in a similar position to us.

"Well…" Watson trailed off awkwardly.

"Well." Holmes repeated.

I looked between the two of them in amusement before laughing slightly and looking over at Watson and Gemma. "How'd your date go?"

"Wonderfully." Watson replied at the same time Gemma added, "Wicked." They both laughed before Gemma asked about ours.

"Well, Sherlock didn't insult anyone, so it was awesome." I grinned.

"I did actually. When you were looking at the menu." He smirked slightly.

"What? What did you do?"

"Told the waiter that perhaps he shouldn't serve the woman he's having an affair with and keep gawking at her in front of her husband. Oh, and I advised him that his aftershave is repulsively overbearing."

"… Right. Well, I didn't see it so it doesn't count." I declared.

There was a light knock on the door before it opened and Mrs Hudson walked in carrying a tray of tea. "Hello dears. It's good to see you took my advice. It was getting awfully tiresome watching you hopelessly stumble around your feelings." He announced with a sly smile as she switched the new tray with the old one and swept from the room.

"Bloody irritating old goat." Sherlock muttered and I elbowed him lightly in the ribs. "What? She is."

"… yeah but she's still your landlady. Be nice."

"I can't promise anything…" he smirked down at me before looking up at Watson and starting a discussion about the case.

As we sat there talking, I became aware of the fact that there was nowhere else in the world that I'd rather be. Cheesy? Oh, I know. But it's _very_ true. I had a budding relationship with Sherlock, my long time best friend and a new best friend in Watson. It was perfect.

**xXxXx**

**a/n: there we go :D hope you liked it. Next chapter they go after the murderer! Yep, finally. :) **

**Please review with anything that you want to happen :)**

**Thanks for reading.**


	9. Chapter 9

**a/n: hey. I don't blame you if you feel like beating me with a heavy object. I didn't mean to leave it this long; school's kinda taken over my life at the moment lol. Year 11 is horrible.**

**Anyway, here's some action for you :D**

**xXxXx**

*Crystal's POV*

As we left the carriage outside Figgins' shop, I couldn't help but feel nervous. I mean, who knows what could go wrong?

Sherlock and Watson strode ahead of us and Watson held the door open for us as we entered. We silently made our way over to the corner of the shop, hiding behind a pillar. Figgins simply nodded at us in understanding before carrying on with his work, to not look suspicious.

It was a good 20 minutes before someone came in, and we all looked to Sherlock who nodded to show it was him. I looked at his shoes – to see if they looked any different – and noticed that they were indeed covered in too much polish. I grinned over at Sherlock who beamed back before walking out of the cover and towards the man. We all followed closely.

"Sir, I need you to turn around and place your hands behind your head." Sherlock ordered.

"What? You're not a copper." The man scoffed, though he looked slightly nervous and made a fleeting glance at the door. Watson swiftly moved to block it.

"Indeed I'm not. But I'm a detective."

"So what? I aint don't nothin'" the man glared.

"Which means you've don't something?" I smirked over at Sherlock as I realized what he meant. The guy needs to learn proper English. "I know you killed Mr Jenkins in an alley way near Saint Bart's two days ago, there is no use denying it. You left far too many clues at the scene." Sherlock replied.

"I don't know what you're talkin' 'bout." The man said quickly before going to dash passed Watson. Watson stood his ground and Sherlock moved forward to grab him too. Mr Smith dodged both of them and sprinted behind me and Gemma. Before we could turn around, I heard a gun being cocked and felt the cold metal of a knife at my throat.

From what I could see, he had the knife at my throat and the gun pointed at Gemma.

"Don't move or I'll kill 'em." He snarled.

Sherlock and Watson both raised their hands to show they weren't going to do anything. I made eye contact with Sherlock as panic started to settle in, and he tried to show me with his eyes I would be okay, but that didn't stop me being scared shitless.

"Right, Mr Smith, put down the weapons, nobody need be hurt." Watson reasoned.

"Fat chance! I'm walking outta here wit' your women, and you're gonna let me or I'll kill them both." He hissed. He slowly started to make us walk towards the door, and I gripped Gemma's hand and gave it a squeeze when she looked at me.

Sherlock and John were pleading with him to let us go, but he forced us out into the street and towards an alleyway. Just as we were walking down it, I could hear shouting and the sounds of boots pounding the floor and horses racing towards us. Looking up, I saw a good twenty officers surrounding us.

"Put the weapons down and step away." I heard Lestrade order. Sherlock must've telegrammed him.

"No! Get out of my way or I'll kill 'em both!" he screamed and dragged us further into the alley. I saw Sherlock and Watson disappear from sight and started panicking again. I had no idea what to do, and the knife was slowly digging in further. I was lucky it hadn't drawn blood yet.

The officers kept their weapons pointed at Mr Smith, but didn't step forward. I could see Gemma starting to panic in the corner of my eye, so I gave her hand another squeeze and whispered to her that it was going to be okay. As we were pulled further into the alley, I started to wonder where Sherlock and Watson were. I looked around for them, but they were nowhere in sight.

Before I knew what was happening, there was a scuffle behind us and suddenly Mr Smith's grip was released on Gemma and she stumbled into Watson's arms. The knife briefly left contact with my throat, but was soon returned as well as the gun being pressed to my temple. He spun me around and I could see Sherlock was stood a few feet away, a gun trained on Mr Smith's head.

"Let her go." He ordered, his lips pressed into a thin line.

"Much easier to manoeuvre around now, with just the one." Mr Smith hissed with a small chuckle, his breath tickling my ear and making me shiver in fear. "Now, I suggest you get out of my way or I'll blow her brains out."

Sherlock reluctantly stepped aside slightly, keeping his gun pointed at Mr Smith who kept my body in front of him.

"No! Don't take her! Leave her alone!" Gemma shrieked and I looked over to see her struggling to get out of Watson's grasp.

I was pulled to the other end of the alley, and as we emerged into the street, the crowd parted in fear and shock to let us through, police officers once again surrounding us. I lost sight of Sherlock again and felt a tear trickle down my cheek as I felt the knife press down again.

"Now missy, we're gonna get in me carriage and we'll be off, alright?" he whispered into my ear. I just nodded silently, to scared to speak. "Good lass." He laughed and pulled me towards a carriage.

As we got near it, Sherlock popped out of the crowd to our left and shoved Mr Smith with all his strength, causing him to drop the knife and stumble backwards. I stumbled to the side and heard a loud bang before a burning pain shot through my side. The world seemed to move in slow motion as I looked down and saw a red stain quickly spreading through my dress, dripping to the floor.

I heard Gemma scream and the sounds of the police arresting Mr Smith as I fell to my knees, clutching my side and gasping for breath. I felt someone's hands on either side of my face and looked up to see Sherlock was trying desperately to get my attention. I saw the panic and concern in his eyes as he shouted something at me. I finally zoned in on what he was saying as I felt myself getting weaker.

"Crystal? Can you hear me? Come on, you have to stay awake!" he ordered as my eyes tried to close. I slumped backwards but he caught me, pulling me round so that I rested against his chest, his arms wrapped around my middle, applying pressure to the bullet wound.

I saw Watson and Gemma sprinting towards me and they all but collapsed at my side, Watson immediately moving to work on my wound as Gemma gasped and looked me in the eye, tears pouring from her eyes. "Crystal! C'mon buddy, stay with us! You can't go now; we still have so much we need to do! Please!"

"Gemma, I'm… you're the best friend ever… you know that?" I gasped out, reaching up shakily to pull her into a hug.

"No! Don't you speak like that! You're not leaving me like this!" she wailed.

"I'm sorry… Watson?" he looked up at me and I saw a tear in his eye. "You're great… I'm so… I'm so glad we met… you take care of… take care of Gemma." I wheezed, kissing his cheek before turning my head to look at Sherlock.

"Don't. You can't." he whispered, a tear rolling down his cheek slowly.

"Look at you!... you're crying." I chuckled weakly, reaching up to brush the tear away and leaving my hand on his cheek. "I... thank you so much… for everything." I flinched as the burning intensified, all around me people were watching, some crying at the picture. "I just… I just wanted to tell you that… I…. I love you Sherlock…. I love you so much." I smiled.

"I love you too Crystal." He whispered and kissed me lightly on the lips. "Come on, you have to stay strong. We're going to get through this, together."

"I love you guys… so much… jus, stay out of… stay out of trouble." I smiled weakly before letting the blackness take over me, my hand dropping from Sherlock's face.

**xXxXx**

**a/n: Wow. **_**I**_** was nearly crying while writing that lol. Sorry about that sad bit. Please review and let me know what you thought though. New chapter will be up soon, as long as you review that is. :D**


	10. Chapter 10

**a/n: wow! You guys **_**really **_**didn't want Crystal to die lol. Well, I'm glad that you all love her so much lol :D**

**Review replies to you peeps without accounts:**

**Jfreak:**** here ya go :D. Lol, here's where you'll find out if you were wrong… ;)**

**Without further ado, here's the next chapter. Thanks for reading.**

**xXxXx**

*Gemma's POV*

"Crystal! Wake up, please!" I screamed as I watched her slump further into Holmes' arms.

I watched as Holmes desperately tried to wake her and felt like my world was crashing down. My best friend was just laying there… not breathing, and I could do nothing to help. I looked down at my front to see that the front of my dress was covered in her blood from when she had hugged me and a loud sob erupted from my throat.

John was working on reviving her when I finally looked up, and I could see the panic in his face as he tried to get her breathing.

It all seemed to go in slow motion as I watched him pumping her chest before Sherlock attempted to give her his breath; the kiss of life. I looked over my shoulder; vision blurred from my tears, and saw Mr Smith was pinned to the floor by a couple of officers while the rest held back the crowd. Lestrade and Clarkie stood there with their hands clutching their hats, which were placed in front of their hearts as they watched them attempting to bring her back.

"Crystal? C'mon Crystal, you need to breathe!" John cried and I watched as tears started to make their way down his face.

"Crystal, please. You'd kick my arse if I did this to you!" I joked numbly, reaching out and grabbing her hand. "Please. We need you."

John did 3 more compressions on her chest before Holmes leant down and breathed into her mouth again, pulling away to take a breath before leaning back in.

I watched in amazement as her chest rose slightly and gripped her hand tightly as Holmes whispered; "She breathed! Watson quick, do something!" he yelled the last bit desperately.

John checked her pulse and bent closer to watch and feel her breathing before straightening and looking Holmes in the eye. "She needs hospital now. Carry her to the carriage Smith was taking her to. Lestrade! You drive!" he yelled before signalling for Holmes to lift her.

Holmes immediately, but carefully, lifter her into his arms bridal-style and rushed her to the carriage as I stumbled after them, hope filling my heart.

Lestrade hopped into the driver's seat and John climbed into the back and helped Holmes get Crystal in. I climbed in and the carriage started straight away, Lestrade was making the horses move with incredible speed.

In the back of the carriage, Holmes sat with Crystal's head on his lap, brushing the hair from her face and watching as John applied pressure to the wound – a look of determination on his face. He was determined not to let her die and I knew then that coming here was the best thing that's ever happened to us.

Once we arrived at the hospital, Holmes took her into his arms once again and took off into the hospital, the three of us following closely behind. John started shouting at nurses who immediately came over to help. They laid her down on a trolley and me, Holmes and Lestrade were pushed into a waiting room, despite our desperate protests. John went with her, to help perform the operation.

I collapsed into a chair, holding my head in my hands as my tears splashed on the ground. Lestrade sat a couple of chairs away, staring at the wall and Holmes started to pace furiously, his cheeks tear stained.

After a few minutes, Holmes stopped pacing and spun on his heel to punch the wall angrily. "I could have stopped this! I shouldn't have tackled him! It's all my fault." He muttered the last bit brokenly and I leapt up from my feet and pulled him into a hug.

He wrapped his arms around me straight away – which surprised me slightly – and rested his head on my shoulder. "It's not your fault. Don't say that. The person at fault here is Smith. Stupid son of a bitch." I hissed angrily, resting my head on his shoulder too. These are the times when people need a friend, and I think we both desperately needed one then.

"But, if I had just… I should…" he inhaled deeply and exhaled a slow, shuddering breath that broke my heart.

"Don't. Don't blame yourself. There's nothing you could've done." I whispered.

After a few minutes, we both pulled back and he smiled at me gratefully as we took a seat next to each other. We sat like that for hours, no one spoke a word. I was watching the door, Holmes was staring at the ceiling and Lestrade was still staring at the wall. After about 10 hours of waiting, John opened the door and stepped in, closing it behind him before facing us.

We all got to our feet anxiously and he stepped towards us. Suddenly, his face broke out into a broad grin and he announced cheerfully; "She's alive. She's unconscious, but she's breathing on her own again."

"Oh thank god." Holmes muttered, with a long, happy sigh. A grin spreading across his face.

"Thank you so much!" I cried, wrapping my arms around John's neck and pulling him into a bone crushing hug. He replied it happily before I pulled back and gave him a quick peck on the lips before pulling away again.

I smiled to myself as I watched Holmes and Watson share a brotherly hug and decided to hug Lestrade, partly because he was the only one not being hugged but mostly because he got us here so quickly. He seemed shocked but then he wrapped his arms around my shoulders.

"Now, she is unstable, but she should make a full recovery." John said after a moment and we pulled apart.

"Can we see her?" I asked.

"Yes, but she's not awake. We don't expect her to wake up for a few days."

He led the way to her room and paused outside of it. He smiled slightly at us before pushing the door open. I gasped quietly. She looked so… ill. She was led on the bed with her hands at her side, her face was pale and I could just see her chest slowly rising and falling. I could feel my eyes welling up again and John took my hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze before pulling me gently into the room.

We all gathered around her bed and I held her left hand as Holmes sat down on a chair next to the bed and took hold of her right hand in both of his, a single tear rolling down his cheek. After about half an hour, Lestrade said that he had to go sort out Smith and we all said good bye to him as he left.

John sat down on a seat on the opposite side of the bed to Holmes and I sat on the arm rest, resting my head on his shoulder and slowly drifting off to sleep.

…

It was five days later that Crystal woke up.

Me, Holmes and John were talking when Holmes felt her squeeze his hand slightly – he hadn't removed his hand from hers unless he left the room for basic human needs – as she stirred. He was on his feet immediately and me and John quickly got up too and I took her other hand in mine as John checked her over.

"Crystal? Can you hear me?" Holmes asked hopefully.

Slowly, her eyes fluttered open and she slowly looked around, a lazy smile spreading its way across her tired face.

"Bet you thought… you'd got… rid of me, hey?" he asked weakly, making us all laugh in relief.

"Thank god you're alright." Holmes muttered softly and kissed her forehead. She grinned at him before reaching up and pulling his head back down to kiss his lips.

"Don't you ever do that to me again!" I scolded lightly, smiling down at her.

"Damn. I was… planning on getting… shot again tomorrow… Way to ruin… my fun." She laughed and winced slightly so John immediately set about getting stuff to clean her wound. When he was done, we both left the room to give them some privacy.

When we were outside, I turned to face John with a huge smile on my face. "Thank you so much for saving her." He beamed at me before I leant up and captured his lips with mine, wrapping my arms around his neck as his went to my waist.

She was alive. Thank god.

**xXxXx**

**a/n: she's alive! You can stop hating me now lol. And now I won't have to find out what evil things **_**deathsdaughterdanielle **_**can do with a spoon and a mouse…**

**By the way: I don't know how many chapters are left of this, but I'm gonna do a sequel because I love this so much lol. But, its gonna be called: 'Falling Back Through The Book' and it will be where they go back to the girls' time. Sound good? Let me know please :)**


	11. Chapter 11

**A/n: Hello again :) thanks to everyone that reviewed the last chapter, I'm glad you all liked it. And I agree with you: I wanted to hug him too! Sorry about all the depressing stuff in the last couple of chapters, things can only get better! xD**

**Anyway, there's probably going to be two or three more chapters to this, and then I'm going to start on the sequel! Woo!**

**I'd like to get this story up to 100 reviews before starting the sequel, so please review! :D**

**xXxXx**

*Crystal's POV*

After a few, extremely boring, weeks in the hospital, I was allowed to go home. Today Sherlock, Watson and Gemma were coming to pick me up and take me home. I couldn't wait. Being cooped up in hospital made me realise how much I've become used to Mrs Hudson and Sherlock bantering, Gladstone snoring or farting and Sherlock's experiments. Without all that, I just got really bored.

It was 10 o'clock when everything was finally sorted out and Watson bought in a wheelchair for me to sit in. Sherlock helped me out of the bed, wrapping one arm around my waist and taking my hand in the other to guide me over to the chair. Once I was seated, Sherlock pushed me through the corridors of the hospital and to the exit.

Watson walked ahead to hail a hansom and Gemma looked down at me as she walked alongside me. "How're you feeling?" she asked, looking me over.

"I feel okay. A little tired, but okay." I smiled. "Don't worry about me."

"Of course we're going to worry about you. You were shot, after all." Sherlock added from behind me.

"Point taken. But, I'm fine now. I'll be throwing pillows at you again in no time." I grinned over my shoulder at him as we reached the hansom.

Watson helped me to my feet and both men helped me into the hansom slowly and carefully as Gemma took the wheelchair back. It took a while to get me in there, as moving too much put strain on my injury, but once I was in I leant against the back of the seat, exhausted.

When Gemma joined us again, Sherlock called out the address to the driver and sat beside me, allowing me to rest my head on his shoulder as he placed his hand on my knee. The ride was short, but at every bump we rode over, I felt a searing pain shoot through my side and gripped Sherlock's hand tightly. He whispered soothing words to me and Gemma pulled my attention away from the pain by telling jokes.

When we got to 221B, Sherlock and Watson once again helped me out of the carriage and then Watson paid the cabby before helping Sherlock gently lead me up the steps to the house. As we reached it, the door was thrown open by Mrs Hudson who exclaimed how happy she was that I was back before I was guided into the downstairs living room as I wasn't allowed to try and get up the stairs.

Once I was seated on the sofa, Sherlock sat next to me and Gemma and Watson sat on the other sofa, all of them looking at me with concern. "Look, I'm not going to spontaneously combust, so there's no need for you all to stare at me."

"How does the wound feel?" Watson asked, ignoring my words.

"It hurts a little, but it's bearable." I replied, leaning against Sherlock who lifted his arm and draped it gently around my shoulders.

"Glad you're better though." Gemma beamed, making me smile too. "God knows what I would do if you…" she trailed off, a tear in her eye.

"Don't cry! I'm fine! In a few days, you're gonna have me back to normal." I smiled reassuringly and Sherlock squeezed my shoulders gently, making me smile up at him. "Oh, what happened to Smith?"

Sherlock glared into the distance and stiffened slightly, but didn't answer. I looked over at the other two, and they both looked between Sherlock and myself, before Watson spoke up. "He wouldn't answer any questions Lestrade asked him, so they called in Holmes to interrogate him and well, things got a bit… out of hand."

"What do you mean 'out of hand'?"

"He beat the crap out of him." Gemma supplied, smiling slightly before wiping it away quickly. "Gave the slimy git what he deserved."

"You… what did you do to him?" I asked, looking up at Sherlock who sighed and looked down at me.

"He wouldn't answer me. I just lost it, as they say. The man had the audacity to say how disappointed he was that he didn't get to take you away with him in his carriage. He kept saying how much fun you would've had." He growled, his free hand clenching into a tight fist on the arm rest.

"He put the man in hospital. Four broken ribs, two cracked. A broken femur. A cracked shin bone. Five broken fingers all together and a fractured skull complete with a broken nose. Not to mention the internal bleeding and countless bruises." Watson informed me, looking at Sherlock with a slightly proud look on his face.

"Is… is he still alive?" I asked.

"Yes. When he woke up, he was so scared of Holmes attacking him again that he confessed everything. Turns out he did kill the man because of a woman. Apparently, they were both after the same woman, and when she told him she wasn't going to choose him, he decided to wipe out the competition." He continued.

"Wow, must've been quite a woman." I laughed, wincing when I pulled on the stitches.

"Not overly. She looked rather too much like a horse." Sherlock muttered and I gently nudged him in the ribs. "What? She did!"

Rolling my eyes at him, I looked over at Gemma and Watson. "So, how's it going between you two?"

They both turned slightly red, before Gemma grinned. "Great."

"Yes, the bachelorettes of London have to start looking for another single man to prey on." Sherlock joked from beside me, earning a laugh from us girls and a mocking look from Watson.

"The same can be said for your admirers, Holmes." Watson stated with amusement and Holmes started spluttering out denials beside me. "Don't pretend you didn't know Holmes. You don't look like a horse's rear, so of course you have admirers. Besides, what woman wouldn't want to snag the charming bachelor that is the World's Greatest Detective?"

"I have absolutely no ide what you're talking about, Watson." Holmes said nonchalantly. "_If_ what you say is true, I can assure you that I didn't notice."

"You really didn't notice the looks you get from women?" I laughed, wincing again but still smiling brightly at him.

"No. I can honestly say I didn't. None have ever approached me, and if they had, I'd have turned them down." He answered.

"Ha! 'Never approached you'? Are you mad?" Watson laughed. "You didn't notice that whenever we had to attend a ball, women were constantly standing near you, hoping you'd offer them a dance? Or even that some women actually _asked_ you?"

"They did? Well, clearly I didn't notice." Holmes shrugged. "Anyway, onto a more interesting topic of discussion: Smith has been charged with a death sentence and his to hang in two days time."

"Two days? Thank god. Bloody arse hole." I muttered.

"I agree. If it was up to me, I'd leave him in a room with the families of the two people he killed. Let them deal with him." Gemma declared angrily.

I laughed and looked over at her with a smile. "That's why you don't make the laws." She rolled her eyes playfully before snuggling up to Watson.

That day was spent with us all talking, Mrs Hudson occasionally popping in with tea or food. I slept on the sofa that night, with my head rested on Sherlock's lap.

oOo

Two weeks later, I was pretty much back to normal. I still couldn't move around too much, but I was able to walk around the house, and that made me happy. I was just walking into the kitchen, when Mrs Hudson appeared from the pantry and started shooing me into a chair.

"Mrs Hudson, I'm allowed to walk around!" I laughed.

"Dear, you need to rest your wound. Now, let me get you some tea. And how about some biscuits?" she asked as she moved around the room in a flurry.

"Yes please, that'd be great." I smiled.

Sherlock and John were out on a case and Gemma was in town, buying me something to 'cheer me up'. Even though I felt fine. She had left a couple of hours ago, and would probably be back soon.

Mrs Hudson sat down across from me and we talked over tea and biscuits until Gemma came home. She called out to me and I called back, letting her know where I was.

"Here you go." She beamed, handing me a box. "You'll love it."

I took the box and stared at it, shaking it gently to see if I could work out what it was. When I couldn't, I put it on the table and carefully took the lid off before leaning over the box to see what it was. "Oh my god! That's so cool!" I beamed, picking the fedora hat out of the box and admiring it.

It was a black one that looked similar to the one Holmes wore at the cemetery in the film, but was clearly smaller so that it would fit me. "I knew you'd like it."

"Thanks so much Gem! This is… this is amazing!" I plopped it on my head before gingerly getting out of my seat to give her a hug.

"No problem. I figured it would cheer you up." She laughed into my shoulder. The front door opened and we pulled apart, making our way into the hall.

"Afternoon ladies." Watson smiled as they removed their coats. Sherlock looked over at me and smiled when he saw my hat.

"I assume you purchased her the hat?" he smiled over at Gemma who nodded.

"She found out she liked those hats when you wore one in the film." She laughed. I blushed slightly when they all looked over at me.

"What? It's a cool hat…" Sherlock laughed before walking over to me and planting a lingering kiss on my lips.

"That it is. Now, come upstairs and we'll fill you in on the case." Taking his proffered arm, I let him lead me up the stairs with a smile.

**xXxXx**

**A/n: There you go. Another chapter for you :D **

**like I said at the start, I really want you guys to review :D to let me know how I'm getting on :D**

**Only a few chapters left, and I start the sequel ;)**


	12. SORRY! messed up the update

**A/n: BUGGER! Why didn't anyone tell me I posted the same chapter again! I'm SO embarrassed! Holy fudge monkeys, I'm dumb. Anyway, here's the **_**actual **_**chapter.**

**I'm on school holidays now, so I have more time for writing! Yay! Granted, I'm supposed to be revising for my exams, but this is WAY more fun :D**

**Thanks to everyone that reviewed. It meant a lot :) Especially Doctorcoffeegirl who reviewed twice XD**

**And I love it that you guys liked that Holmes beat up Smith. Lol. A few of you commented saying about that ;)**

**Right then, there's one or two chapter s after this one :D then I start the sequel! Yay! :)**

**I know, I know. You may bask in the awesomeness of the sequel. :D lol.**

**Anyway, I'm sure you all don't want to hear me blabbering on, you're here for the story! So, without further ado, THE NEXT CHAPTER!**

**xXxXx**

When we were seated in the upstairs living room, Sherlock started to pace in front of the fire place. Watson and Gemma were sat together on one sofa, and I sat on the other one, my eyes following Sherlock as he paced quickly.

"The case is this: a man was murdered in his home at approximately two in the morning. He was killed using a heavy object, something stone, I believe. He was hit on the back of his head as he sat at his desk, and was killed instantly. Now," he paused his pacing and looked over us all. "His desk was raided, as well as his cupboards. So the murderer was searching for something. Something important, seeing as they even tore the paintings from the wall, looking for a safe, no doubt."

He pulled out his pipe and stuffed it full of tobacco before realising what he was doing and putting it away with a small smile at me. I beamed back at him; proud that he was still not smoking because of me.

"Were there any traces of the murderer?" Gemma asked.

"Yes. There was a footprint left just below the window. The window was on the ground floor, at the back of the house. This would enable the murderer to sneak around there and climb through the window without raising any suspicion. Now, the foot print was a size ten, and wasn't embedded very deep. This shows that the man wasn't very heavy. So, either he is thin, or light on his feet."

He froze on the spot and looked at us again, thinking deeply about something. "What? What is it Holmes?" Watson asked.

"Well, the butler said that he heard a thud, followed by a lot of banging at around two in the morning. So, that meant that he heard the murder taking place. But, he didn't go down the stairs until seven, so he says. There wasn't any sign that the door of the study – where the body was found – had been opened after the murder."

"How do you know that? Was there stuff in front of it when the police arrived?" I asked and he grinned at me.

"Exactly! They told me that upon arriving, there was a draw behind the door. They moved it with the door when they opened it."

"So he lied! He didn't even go in the room!" Watson cried.

"I bet he has size ten feet, too." I laughed but stopped when Sherlock jumped over to me and dropped to his knee in front of me.

"Oh, you're brilliant!" he cried, placing a hasty kiss on my lips before running out of the room.

"Uh, thanks?" I muttered, watching Watson run after him.

"Wow. That was… something." Gemma laughed.

"Yeah, you're telling me." I giggled. The door opened, and Mrs Hudson walked in with a broad smile.

"I heard the men leave again and thought that you might like something to do."

"Yes please, Mrs Hudson." I beamed and Gemma stood up first, hovering near me as I got to my feet in case I fell. I rolled my eyes at her, and followed Mrs Hudson down the stairs.

"When was the last time you two ladies cooked something?" she called over her shoulder.

"Uh… ages." Gemma laughed as we walked into the kitchen.

"Well, you can help me make a cake." She announced.

"Great, I love baking." I grinned before taking the bowl she handed me.

We started getting all the equipment and ingredients out, and listened carefully to Mrs Hudson's instructions.

…

Me and Gemma were clearing up – and by 'clearing up' I mean we were eating the cake batter from the bowl – because Mrs Hudson had an appointment with her friend and we offered to finish up for her, when we heard the door open and close. Two sets of feet made their way towards the kitchen, and I turned around in time to see Watson and Sherlock stroll through the door.

"Where's Mrs Hudson?" Watson asked as he made his way to the flour-covered Gemma.

"She had an appointment with a friend, so we're clearing up." Gemma answered, hiding her spoon full of batter behind her back.

"Oh? I take it that doesn't include yourselves?" Sherlock laughed as he stopped in front of me.

"What do you mean?" I asked, looking down at my apron that was _covered _in cake mixture and flour. "Oh." Sherlock chuckled at me, and, feeling childish, I reached up with my spoon and splodged a dollop of batter onto the end of his nose.

He stared at the end of his nose – which was hilarious, because he was cross-eyed – before looking me in the eye with a grin. "No! No, no, no!" I stuttered and started moving backwards. He lifted his hand and got the batter off of his nose before moving with me. He still had a load on his face.

"What? I just want to talk to you, dear." He grinned.

"No you don't!" I laughed and raised my spoon to defend myself. "Gemma! Help!"

Suddenly, a big blob of cake batter hit Sherlock on the shoulder, and I looked up to see Gemma laughing hysterically. Watson, taking Sherlock's side in this, put a blob on his finger and ran it down Gemma's cheek.

"Hey!" she laughed and covered his face with her hand – which was covered in batter.

I was laughing at Gemma, when I felt Sherlock's arms go around my waist. I looked up just in time to see him lean close and wipe his face on mine – making all the batter that was left on his face, spread across mine.

That's how the food fight started.

Holmes and Watson were hiding behind the table, throwing blobs of cake batter over the top, while me and Gemma were hiding behind a couple of cupboard doors. I winced when I pulled my stitches again, but ignored the pain and carried on launching cake mix at the boys.

"What the bloody hell is going on?" Oh fudge. Mrs Hudson's back.

"They started it!" me and Gemma chorused.

"We- no we didn't!" Watson spluttered, him and Holmes standing up and looking like school boys who are being told off by their head teacher.

"I expect this kind of behaviour from you, Mr Holmes. But not you doctor Watson!" she frowned, but I could see a hint of amusement in her eyes.

"Me? Why me?" Sherlock muttered.

"Because you're immature. Now, the four of you best get cleaning. I only popped back to tell you I shan't be back until dinner time, so it better be done by then." She winked at me and Gemma, before spinning on her heel and strutting from the room, and then the building.

It was silent for a few seconds, before we all burst out laughing. I leant against the counter, clutching my side as I laughed, and Sherlock came and stood next to me, wrapping an arm around my waist. All of our outfits were completely covered in flour and batter.

"How's your side?" he asked, pressing a kiss to the top of my head.

"Fine. I pulled it earlier, but its okay now." I smiled, turning my head to give him a kiss.

"Good, good. Now then, we should clean up this mess…" he trailed off, looking around the room – which looked like a bakery had exploded inside it.

"Yeah, we should." I sighed and we all started clearing up.

…

When the kitchen was finally finished, Sherlock guided me up the stairs and into his room. "You should wear these. They'll be easier for you to move in, and easier to get in and out of." He smiled, handing me a pair of his trousers and a shirt. I put them on a chair and smiled up at him.

"Thank you." I said as I wrapped my arms around him. His arms found their way around my waist and he chuckled.

"Not a problem." It was silent for a moment, before Sherlock spoke again. "Thank you for blaming me earlier." He said with a chuckle.

"Me? Never! I wouldn't do _that_." I giggled, pulling back to look up at him.

"Oh really? Then what do you call; 'they did it!'?" he laughed.

"Um… it wasn't me? Besides, Mrs H didn't mind."

"Luckily. If it was just me, she would have murdered me."

"Oh, well in that case, I apologise." I chuckled and tilted my head up to kiss him. His arms tightened around my waist as he pulled me closer and I wrapped my arms around his neck.

"Apology accepted." He muttered into the kiss, making me laugh. I deepened the kiss and ran my hands through his hair, enjoying how safe I felt in his arms. When we pulled apart, I placed one last lingering kiss on his lips before smiling and pulling away.

"I'm gonna go get dressed." He nodded, and I picked up the clothes he leant me. I paused with my back to him, and smiled to myself. When I turned around, I beamed up at him and said; "I love you."

"I love you too, Crystal." He said without hesitation, which made my smile widen and I dropped the clothes, leaning up to capture his lips once again.

**xXxXx**

**A/n: There you go :) Another chapter of FLUFFY LOVE XD. I love writing these two like this, its so sweet :) lol.**

**Anyway, please review :) Remember, I want to get to at least 100 reviews before starting the sequel :D**


	13. Chapter 13

**A/n: thanks to everyone that reviewed the last chapter :D it was great to hear from you, and sorry again for the mess up lol.**

**Anyway, review replies to those without accounts:**

**SmileySherlock:**** Yes, yes it was. But the proper one is up now; in case you haven't read it :) hope you like it.**

**England's Rose: ****Glad you like it so far :) you should watch the film; Robert plays Holmes so, so well. Thank you, it's so great to hear that you think I'm talented :D it means a lot :) here you go, hope you like this update too :)**

**xRDJ: ****No worries lol. Still can't believe I did that. So embarrassing lol. Glad you liked the PROPER update ;) and I hope you enjoy this one too, buddy :D**

**Right, I've finally decided on what's happening. I'm going to do this last chapter, and a short epilogue/preview thing for the FINAL piece on this story. Then it'll be the sequel, which will be called; 'Falling Back Through The Book'. Okay? Great ;)**

**Enjoy!**

**xXxXx**

2 weeks after the food fight, I was completely healed. I had a scar, obviously, but it no longer caused me pain. The occasional twang, but nothing serious, which was great. Sherlock had just solved another case, and we were all sat in Lestrade's office while he recounted the facts to the DI.

"So, how did he get in the building?" Lestrade asked as he finished jotting down the last fact that had came out of Sherlock's mouth.

"Well, here's where he messed up; he entered through the window. He made sure that he didn't leave it open, or any marks on it when he left, but he failed to cover up his footprints in the mud beneath the window. He didn't need to force the window open, as the maid forgot to lock it before she retired. Easy." Sherlock finished with a smile as he leant back in the chair next to mine.

"Ah, right. One last thing; how did you know where they were hiding?"

"Ah, yes. Well, the hansom they used had a wheel with a large crack in it – I don't know if you noticed it in the tracks? So, if they wanted to get away from London, they would have to get that repaired. I simply visited the places they could possibly get it repaired that were nearby, and eventually found the one I needed. Obviously, the stolen goods were no longer in there, but, they had told the owner that they would pick it up the next morning from my visit. I got there early, and followed them to where they were hiding."

"Right. That's another one wrapped up then. Thank you, Holmes." Lestrade smiled and leant across the table to offer Sherlock his hand. They shook hands before Lestrade looked over at me with a small smile. "And how is your injury, Miss Strong?"

"Oh, it's much better now, thank you. It pulls every now and again, but nothing serious. Thank you again, for helping."

"Oh, it was no trouble Miss." He smiled.

We stayed in Lestrade's office for a few hours before we all left to walk home. On the way, Sherlock and John suggested we pop into the tailors, as they needed to go and fetch something. When we offered to go with them, they had both refused and insisted that we should find something nice to wear for dinner tomorrow night. So we gave in and entered the tailors.

Once inside, Gemma went straight into girly-best friend mode and started suggesting dress after dress to me. Eventually, a group of women who obviously worked in the shop came over and started fussing over the pair of us, saying what we needed and what would suit us. Gradually, we found ourselves being guided to the dressing rooms and they started bringing in different materials. Obviously, they were going to make our dresses. Fun.

…

About a half an hour later, the bell above the shop door jingled and two sets of footsteps worked their way towards us. They stopped outside the dressing room, before Sherlock's voice spoke out. "Crystal? Gemma?"

"In here. Come in." I called back.

They walked in a second later, and both their eyes widened simultaneously – making me roll my eyes with a smile. We were stood in our under-dresses while the women were either measuring us or holding up different materials to see what they would look like on us. The boys stood there awkwardly whilst not looking away, while we were acting like human mannequins.

"What? Never seen a woman like this before?" I scoffed and was immediately told off for moving.

"I- ahem. We…" Watson stuttered and trailed off, awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck.

Gemma laughed, receiving a finger wag from an old lady which she scowled at. "How much longer are you going to be? This is really boring." She asked.

"We'll be finished when we're finished. Now keep still!" a middle-aged woman hissed at her and we both stuck our tongues out at her.

"So, get what you needed?" I asked Sherlock and Watson, and raised my eyebrow when they simultaneously tapped their pockets.

"Indeed we did, my dear." Sherlock replied with a smile.

"Good. I'm bored." I told a woman who stopped in front of me with a piece of midnight blue silk.

"Well be bored whilst being still." She demanded and lifted my arms higher. I huffed and glared at her while the others laughed.

…

When we were _finally_ finished, we were told the dresses would be delivered later that evening. We thanked them and left, eager to get out of the stupid shop.

"Well, that was the most horrifying experience I've ever had." I announced as I looped my arm through Sherlock's.

"It wasn't _too_ bad." He chuckled and smiled down at me slyly.

"Men." I muttered with a small smile tugging at my lips.

When we got back to 22B, Mrs Hudson was there to greet us. She offered us tea and dinner before scurrying off into the kitchen. We made our way up the stairs and into the living room before shrugging out of our jackets – and hats, for the men. I sat on mine and Sherlock's usual sofa while Gemma and Watson sat on theirs. Sherlock was at the drinks cabinet, pouring everyone a drink. He handed everyone theirs before sitting next to me.

"How's your practice going, Watson?" I asked, breaking the silence.

"It's going well. This time of the year is when I get most patients." He smiled before sipping his drink.

"Let's play I spy." Gemma said suddenly, causing us all to look at her.

"And how do we play that?" Sherlock asked.

"Well, you say 'I spy wit my little eye, something beginning with…' then you say the fist letter of an object that you can see." She answered with an enthusiastic smile.

"Very well." He nodded for Gemma to go first, and she beamed before looking around the room.

"I spy with my little eye, something beginning with… G."

"Globe." Holmes answered immediately.

"How did you get it first go?" she whined.

"Simple; your eyes lingered on it longer than everything else." He answered smugly and I elbowed him lightly in the side.

"Right, you have to close your eyes while someone thinks of what to say." I told everyone. They nodded, and Gemma went again.

"I spy with my little eye, something beginning with… R."

"Rug?" I guessed and she shook her head.

"Rugby ball? Holmes! I thought you didn't know where that was?" Watson suggested while glaring at Holmes, who shrugged with a smile. Again, Gemma shook her head.

"Riding crop." Sherlock stated more than suggested.

"Yep, you're go." She grinned and Sherlock looked around lazily before we closed our eyes.

"Right. I spy with my little eye, something beginning with… P."

"Paper?" I offered.

"No."

"Painting?" Watson guessed.

"No, old boy."

"Photo?" Gemma suggested.

"No." Sherlock smiled.

After about 10 minutes, we gave up and demanded he tell us what it was. "Potassium." He said with a smug smile while gesturing towards his chemistry set.

"… Yeah, we're not playing this game anymore." I laughed and rested my head on his shoulder.

…

Later that night, after I made my way up the stairs from where I had helped Mrs Hudson clear up after dinner, I walked into the sitting room to see Sherlock sat in his armchair by the fire, reading a book. Gemma and Watson had gone for a walk after dinner and said they would pick up the dresses.

"Hey." I greeted as I made my way over.

He looked up and smiled. "Hello, my dear. Finished?"

"Yep." I grinned and lowered myself onto his lap. He wrapped an arm around my waist as I buried my face into his shoulder and draped my legs across his. "What are you reading?" I asked a couple of minutes later, glancing at the book in his hands.

"An interesting piece of writing by a French detective. It's his views on certain methods of detecting. Of course, they're mostly incorrect, but he is marginally talented." He smiled down at me as he turned the page.

"Oh, cool." I smiled back, placing a soft kiss against his lips. He smiled into the kiss before placing his book on the table next to us and wrapping his other arm around my waist as well.

"How is your side?"

"It's fine. I think it looks pretty cool – the scar, I mean." I grinned.

"And why is that?" he chuckled.

"I don't know. Do you have any scars?"

"Quite a few, actually. Not as big as yours, but a few." He smiled.

We stayed up talking for hours, before we both eventually fell asleep in that position – me on his lap with my face in his chest while his arms were wrapped around me and his face buried in my hair. I couldn't think of a better way to fall asleep.

**xXxXx**

**A/n: not the most eventful chapter, I know. But, that's because stuffs happening in the next chapter that will kick off the sequel :D please review, it's always great to hear from you :)**

**Oh, and here's my Twitter name: x_picknmix_x I'll be keeping you up to date on my progress there :D**


	14. Chapter 14

**A/n: Right. As promised, here is the epilogue. As we have made it to 100 reviews, I will be starting the sequel soon, so keep your eyes peeled ;). Thanks to everyone that has reviewed and stuck with me through this story, I love you all!**

**This is the first multichapter story I have ever actually finished, I think. Most of them just keep going… lol :D **

**Anyway, thanks again to those who reviewed, I'm glad you all enjoyed it. This chapter will be shorter than the others, because it's just here to get you excited for the sequel :D. So, without further ado, here's the final chapter of Falling Through A Book! *sniffle***

**xXxXx**

When I woke up, Sherlock was reading his book again. Yawning, I stretched out before planting a lazy kiss on his lips. He chuckled and watched me stumble to my feet and stretch again. When I peeked out of the curtains, I noticed that it was getting on mid day and smiled. "Breakfast?" I asked as I stopped in front of him.

"Indeed. I do believe Watson and Gemma are already awake." He smiled and set down his book before getting to his feet. He took my hand and together we entered the downstairs living room. Watson and Gemma were just sitting down and smiled at us as we entered.

"Good morning. Crystal, you said it was 'The Sign of Four' that hit you, yes?" Watson asked as I took a seat next to Gemma.

"Yeah, why?"

"Well, I thought you might like to read the original." He smiled.

My eyes widened and I grinned madly. "Really? That would be so cool! Thanks, Watson." I leant over and gave him a quick hug before returning to my seat.

He turned and picked a book up from the side table behind him, and held it out to me whilst smiling widely. "Well, whenever you're ready, here it is."

"Thank you so much." I beamed and carefully took the book from his hands. I set it on the table beside my plate and started to open it, but got distracted by Mrs Hudson entering with breakfast.

…

After breakfast, Sherlock and Watson insisted that we try on our new dresses, so me and Gemma did so. When we were both ready, we wandered into the living room and I twirled sarcastically. "There, happy now?"

"You look wonderful." Sherlock smiled and got to his feet. As he made his way over to me, he looked me up and down with a smile.

"Dresses are so annoying. They take _forever_ to get on!" I whined childishly as he placed his hands on my waist and stopped when our bodies touched.

"Ah, but the suit you so well." He smiled and leaned down to kiss me softly.

I picked up Watson's book and pulled Sherlock over to sit with me. Once I was snuggled against him, I ran my finger along the writing on the front of the book and felt the anxiety welling up inside me. "I don't want to damage it." I muttered quietly as Watson and Gemma took a seat across from us.

"You won't, don't worry." Watson assured and I smiled at him before turning the book over in my lap, preparing to open it.

As soon as the cover was opened fully, something weird happened. The pages started turning on their own, so fast that I couldn't even get a glimpse of what was on them. I looked up to see that everyone was just as shocked as I was, and before I could close the book, a blindingly bright light burst through the middle pages and started to spread throughout the room. I clung to Sherlock, and gasped as the room was completely engulfed in the bright light.

"Crystal?" Gemma shouted from wherever she was.

Before I could reply, though, everything went black.

…

When I came to, I sat up slowly and blinked. I was in my living room. Fearing that everything that had happened was just a dream, I closed my eyes and opened them again. Nothing changed. I felt like I was going to cry, until I heard a loud groan from behind me. Shooting my head around, I saw Sherlock led just behind me. With a smile that should have split my face, I straddled his stomach and grinned down at him.

"Thank god! I thought I was waking up from the best dream ever!" I cried excitedly as I leant down to kiss him. When I pulled away, I looked over to the left to see Watson and Gemma were still sprawled out on the floor. "Gemma! Gemma, we're home!" I called and she groaned before sitting up and rubbing her eyes.

She looked around confused for a moment before grasping Watson's hand and pulling him to his feet. I and Sherlock got up too, and I noticed that he and Watson were staring around the room in awe. "What… where are we?" Sherlock asked.

"We're in our flat. In 2011." I replied and looked around. Everything was _exactly_ as we left it. That was odd. Frowning slightly, I looked at the clock. "Twelve thirty eight. Isn't that the time we left?"

"Oh my god! It is!" Gemma cried and ran over to her laptop. She opened it and gawped at the screen. "It… it's the same date!"

"Wow. That's…. odd." I muttered.

"What on earth is this?" turning around I saw that Sherlock had picked up my DS and grinned.

"Well…"

**xXxXx**

**A/n: There you go. The sequel will be up soon, but please let me know what you thought of this. Think of it as a farewell to this story :D let's see how many reviews this FINAL chapter can get, shall we? :D**


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